Heavy Heart
by rolly21
Summary: When Meredith and her fiancé move to Seattle, she thinks she is moving home to settle down and raise her growing family. Everything is going smoothly until Dr Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli, rock up on their doorstep. Their appearance changes everything Meredith thought she knew about her mother.
1. Chapter 1

**New story, its been a while since i have posted anything, but this little project has over 40 pages banked, so lets see how it goes.**

Callie squeezed her fiancés hand as they walked towards the hospital together. Today was going to be their first day at Seattle grace hospital - a hospital in which Meredith was born and her mother was now chief.

There had been a great debate over returning to this hospital. Callie knew that Meredith wasn't too sure that working for her mother was the best decision and Callie had to admit that working for her future mother in law was a very daunting concept. Nonetheless both girls had allowed themselves to be coerced in moving to Seattle from sunny Miami with the promise of ground breaking technological equipment and room for research to complete a few medical trials.

Callie felt Meredith pause in front of the doors, and she stopped beside her, her arm moving to wrap around her fiancé.

"Please tell me that everything's going to go okay." Meredith requested, and Callie felt her sink into her arms. It was very rare for Meredith to speak up about what concerned her, and even more so to display that concern in both actions and words. Callie was used to hacking into her brain these days to solve the problems to help her fiancé,

"It will be okay" Callie reassured her and hoped that she was telling the truth because she really didn't want to move back to Miami.

Callie heard Meredith sigh, and she felt the shorter woman tilt her head before placing a chaste kiss on her jaw.

"How about I promise you that if things turn to shit, we can walk away after a month" Callie bargained knowing that if they lasted a month then they would be likely to stay.

"A month?" She heard Meredith ask and felt her turn in her arms so that they were now face to face.

"Yeah, it's enough time to hunt for a new job, and to justify selling another house in efforts to relocate " Callie replied smartly.

Hearing Meredith giggle; Callie dipped her head to capture her fiancés lips.

It was a short kiss, just enough to moisten their lips . On pulling back she pulled Meredith closer to her so that they were practically one.

Meredith in turn wrapped her arms around Callie and let them just be in their own skin. They had not always been this comfortable with their public displays of affection, especially when their relationship had come out in Miami but slowly everything had turned and it had been completely natural for them.

"Te amo" Callie whispered to Meredith before lowering a hand to squeeze her arse.

Callie watched as Meredith smiled before returning the arse squeeze. "You too" Meredith returned as she then pulled out of their hug and returned to holding callie's hand.

Callie watched as something new and fresh took over her fiancé and suddenly they continued their path towards the building, knowing that this was the first day of a new part of their life together.

\- Heavy Heart - Heavy Heart -

Ellis grey hated when people were late, and she considered them so if they weren't present and waiting 5 minutes before their scheduled meeting time. Tardiness was never tolerated, and matters had only been made worse with the knowledge that it was her daughter and her infatuation that were late.

She had been wanting Meredith to come home now for the past 2 years. It had been encouraged by the fact that she was tired of reading all the great things she had been doing and had insisted that she got to see her in action. Of course, the only way Ellis had been able to lure her daughter home was to offer a position to her daughters apparent fiancé.

Picking up Callie Torres had not been intentional but even Ellis had to admit that what she had read on the woman was impressive. It was her game and her research that had cemented her position at the hospital, being Meredith's partner meant nothing.

Now though, Ellis fumed, both women had not only decided to share an appointment with her, but both had the nerve to be late. Turning away from the clock, Ellis looked at the only personal item that she had in the room, a photo of her family.

Looking now at a young Meredith, Ellis still had no idea where she had gone wrong. Both her and thatcher had been grooming her to marry a nice young man and instead she chose to use her best features to dazzle a woman. She had no idea how her husband felt about the situation as both seemed to ignore the fact that their only heir would most likely not give them a grand child or even marry.

Letting out a sigh, Ellis looked away from the photo and to the window that surrounded her office view of the foyer and cat walk. She watched as her daughter walked beside Callie Torres, hand in hand. They appeared to be talking quietly to each other. Ellis had to admit she had never seen her daughter looking so relaxed. Deciding to pull back on her temper, Ellis continued to watch her daughter as she shifted to brush a kiss on her fiancés cheek before moving towards her office door.

The knock was short and sharp, much like the way she had raised her daughter, and Ellis waited a moment, pretending to be busy before going to the door to greet them.

She forced a smile, she really wanted to get this part over. It had nothing to do with the company, but more so the formalities that needed to be worked through before contracts were completely signed.

"Ladies," Ellis invited and watched as Meredith raised an eyebrow at her.

Ellis watched as Meredith led herself and Callie into the room.

"Dr Grey" Callie responded, however, Meredith remained quiet.

"Welcome to Seattle Grace. I assure you, you won't be disappointed with the facilities." Ellis greeted further and could tell that her daughter clicked on straight away to what was happening.

"Thank you" both girls quickly responded.

Soon both girls were seated and their contracts signed, and any idea of what came next had been lost.

"Well" Ellis sounded once the work based crap had been finished. She was not too sure what she should now do in regards to her daughter and her companion.

"I know where everything is" Meredith quickly informed her and Ellis replies with a thin smile.

"Where did you both decide to stay?" Ellis intercepts before her daughter could find a way out. " your father thought you would like the penthouse until you find something."

Callie looked at her future mother in law and figured that it was now that she needed to step in and show that she was able to provide for her fiancé. " We have a house in Queen Anne, I flew out early to source it and ensure that it was what we both wanted before purchasing." Callie spoke up and could see that Ellis was shocked.

"It's fully furnished and we have everything we need, but thank you for the offer." Callie finished before reaching over and taking Meredith's hand.

"Wasting your trust fund?" Ellis asked Meredith quickly and Meredith felt Callie tense beside her.

"Mother" Meredith said as she attempted to speak up

"I paid for that damn house. " Callie said as she moved to stand and Meredith moved quickly to position herself between the woman she loved and her mother. She knew Callie had the ability to become almost bear like when she felt threatened.

"Mother" Meredith said, as her hand moved to rest against callie's stomach. "Calliope and I both have sizeable trust funds, neither have had any desire or need to touch them since med school. The house we have, Calliope purchased out of her own pay check."

"Mer" Callie growled from behind her.

"Am I to believe this?" Ellis asked.

Meredith nodded, "feel free to check the account. You and daddy still have access."

" I can provide for my own damn family." Callie seethed and Meredith turned to her completely aiming to shut her mother out.

" I know baby" Meredith said, as she raised a hand to caress her tanned cheek, "and now so does she."

Ellis watched the exchange and could see how her daughter seemed to calm the woman almost instantly .

"Your father and I were concerned." Ellis told her daughter with a sigh.

"There is no need to be mother, Calliope Torres has the same social standing as we Grey's and even if she didn't, she would still find a way to provide for our growing family."

As Meredith finished the sentence, she moved to rest a hand on her fiancés stomach. She hadn't intended on telling her mother that they had a child coming, not for quite a while yet, but the information had tumbled out in an effort to show her mother that they were indeed a family.

"My uterus, her egg." Callie said simply, before moving to wrap her arms around Meredith. She had been surprised by Meredith's over share, but knew that she had done it for them.

"Your timetables" Ellis promptly sounded, not sure of what else she could say to the revelation. She then handed over the papers.

Meredith taking her abruptness as a need to process what had been revealed , took both her own and her fiancés schedules and dragged Callie towards the door. She knew that in finding the time to settle in, her mother would take the time to think of a suitable reaction to the news.


	2. Chapter 2

**So apparently i have used the term fiancee wrong - i apologise? I didn't realise it was going to be such an issue... oh well.**

Callie had hoped in a way, that she wouldn't have to deal with Ellis Grey again, at least not anytime soon. However, she had a feeling that the exposure of the baby she was carrying would trigger some form of action or response from the woman. Meredith had already mentioned that they should bring their wedding date forward, and even if they had debated how far along Callie should be pregnant before they do so, it still gave her some nervous jitters.

Callie loved the idea of being Meredith's wife. She wouldn't have asked the woman to marry her if she hadn't intended on doing so, but the nerves were amazing and coupled with the morning sickness that she had been experiencing for the last 2 months, they hadn't really helped.

Callie decided that they would need to find a suitable OB GYN soon as she was due for her 3 month checkup and told herself that once they verified that everything was still perfect then she would tell Meredith that they had a green light for wedding planning.

Resting a hand on her stomach, Callie moved towards the OB section on level 4. After packing away her things in her office, she had figured she could bite the bullet and make an appointment. All the while, Meredith was still in her office looking over her schedule. Callie had decided not to ask her what was puzzling her with it at the moment, and knew that she would receive the answer when Meredith was ready.

"Can I please make an appointment to see the OB?" Callie asked the woman at the desk

"Name?" Was the first response she received.

Callie wondered whether the woman had an inability to read.

"Torres" she quickly responded.

"The new ortho doc?" A voice came from behind her, and she turned to take in the sight of a fabulous looking red head, with creamy white skin and long legs that dazzled with the pumps that rested at their bottom.

"The one and only" Callie replied as she finished giving her the once over.

"Addison Montgomery Shepherd" the red head offered and poked out her hand, "head of neonatal," she added

Callie nodded as she shook the woman's hand and swallowed slightly. She didn't know what else to say to her.

"If you want to come through, I can squeeze you in now." Addison offered, and Callie quickly nodded

"Do you have someone to accompany you. Rumour is Little Grey is here somewhere and she is the reason we pulled your amazing skills."

"Little Grey?" Callie asked before realising that the woman was referring to Meredith."I will just page her if that's ok"

OB APPOINTMENT NOW

COME CHECK OUT OUR BUNDLE!

"What room?" Callie quickly asked.

"Exam room 4," Addison replied promptly. "If you head on through, I will join you once Little Grey has arrived"

Callie nodded, unsure of what to think about the apparent nickname the staff had given her fiancée.

EXAM ROOM 4

Callie quickly added to the page knowing that Meredith would call otherwise and she didn't want to waste anymore time.

Moving down the corridor towards the exam room, Callie tried to focus on the impending appointment and the decisions based on the wedding that could arise, and pushed away any thought of her new OB.

...heavy heart... heavy heart...

Meredith knocked lightly on the exam room door, and entered to see her fiancée laying back nervously on The bed. "Ads said she will be in shortly." She informed Callie as she made her way over to her, dipping her head to kiss her.

"Hmmm" Callie sounded, vaguely registering the shortened name of the OB.

"You know her?" Callie finally asked and Meredith could see the surprise in her eye.

"Addison Montgomery, the leading Neonatal specialist in the U.S.A. She is also married to Derek shepherd, head of Neuro at this fine facility." Meredith told her, making it seem as if she had done her research.

"Best friend and cousin of Meredith Grey" Addison filled in, "and yes she did check out my legs." Addison added as she moved into the room to wrap her arms around Meredith.

Meredith giggled as she pulled back and looked down at her fiancée.

"I knew you would." Meredith told her, giggling further at the blush that had formed on the latina's face. "You love the legs." Meredith added as she leant in to kiss her once more.

"Your mother was one step ahead of you, in notifying me on this pregnancy" Addison told Meredith as Meredith pulled back.

Meredith smiled at her cousin before taking Callie's hand and giving it a squeeze. "You knew we were trying." Meredith responded and moved to stand closer to Callie.

"How about we check out the bub, and then we talk about this." Meredith suggested, wanting to stay focused on why they were in this room first.

Meredith knew that Addison had a way of intimidating her partners. She didn't always intend on doing so, but Addison liked testing them to make sure that they were faithful and genuine. There had been others in the past that would notice Addison and attempt to wander, but then there were people like Callie, whom Meredith knew would look but not touch. The others however, would hit the ground running once they had been intimidated.

Addison had picked up on the prompting by Meredith and moved forward to push up the gown that was now covering the top half of Callie.

"The gel is going to be cool." Addison warned and Meredith squeezed Callie's hand.

It didn't take long for the image to appear on the ultrasound machine. Something that was not very big at all but obviously had developed arms, legs, little feet and hands.

"Oh" Callie sounded and Meredith again squeezed her fiancées hand.

"Looks to be 8 centimetres long, growing well" Addison informed before rattling off the other data on the baby.

Meredith leant in and studied the image carefully, taking in every detail.

"Heartbeat?" Meredith asked, and watched as Addison pushed a button and allowed the whooshing sound to fill the room.

Tears formed in Meredith's eyes as she looked down at Calliope, only to have the woman look back up at her in a similar manner.

"God I love you" Meredith spoke as she dropped her head to take Callie's lips in a passionate kiss. Meredith knew that she had taken Callie's breath away with the kiss as she had also lost her own and pulled back after completely devouring the woman.

Meredith rested her head against Callie's and just breathed her in.

"Perfect" Callie sounded and Meredith only sounded in agreement.

"I'm just going to print these." Addison interrupted, kicking herself for needing to do so. "Can I print one for your mother as well?" She asked.

"We need 5 copies." Meredith said as she looked at her cousin with a big smile, knowing just who she was sending each copy to.

"Hey Add" Meredith said, knowing that she could combat her cousins thoughts now. "She may notice your legs, but temptation comes and goes, but nothing rips apart our family."

Callie looked at Meredith with a soft smile. She knew that Meredith knew that her mind had been on those legs when she had paged.

Once Addison nodded and left the room, Meredith brushed her hand over her fiancées cheek. "I know my bear"

"Just like I know my wild cat" Callie replied with a soft smile, loving the random nicknames they had given each other the past few years

"They are pretty amazing legs." Meredith told her.

"Not as good as yours" Callie sounded, as Meredith climbed up onto the bed beside her and snuggled in. She needed to savour the moment with her partner, knowing that tonight they would finally discuss wedding dates so that they could formally become a family.


	3. Chapter 3

**So i have just realised that i didn't post a disclaimer at the beginning of this fic.**

 **I don't own the show or the characters. However, i do enjoy playing with them :)**

Ellis was pleased when Addison had paged to confirm the health of Meredith and Callie's baby. She had contacted the same woman earlier to ask her to check out the Latino to ensure that yes she was pregnant and that the baby was healthy. She would be concerned more about DNA much later.

On confirmation Ellis let a small smile grace her face at the thought that being a grandmother might be possible. Then she sighed knowing that she would need to inform her husband of the most recent development.

Reluctantly moving over to her office phone she picked up her handset and dialled one, knowing that she had him on speed dial.

"El?" A voice came down the line as she dropped into her seat.

"Thatch" Ellis responded.

"Everything ok?" He asked and Ellis let out a sigh.

"You alone?" She asked and paused to wait for an answer.

"Yeah, the boys have just gone to get everyone's lunch." Thatcher replied. Ellis knew that they were in the middle of developing a new estate.

"Mer's here." Ellis quickly informed him and before he could interrupt she continued. "And Callie'a pregnant"

There was a long pause and Ellis wasn't sure whether her husband had dropped his phone.

"Thatch?" She questioned after a moment longer.

"How?" Thatcher seemed to ask back and Ellis could imagine him sitting behind his office desk mouth wide open in shock.

"According to Meredith, Callie has been impregnated with a fertilised egg of hers. I have no idea who the donor is." Ellis informed "but I can tell you that I have never ever seen Meredith like this with someone."

Again Thatcher had gone quiet on the phone and Ellis waited for some form of response from the man. Her man.

"We will have the pair over for dinner so that we can discuss these new developments. Have they mentioned more in regards to their impending nuptials? And where are they living?" Thatcher progressed.

"Queen Anne, heard nothing more about the nuptials, and maybe the invite would be better coming from you." Ellis quickly answered and she knew that Thatcher would pick up on the fact that she had put her foot in her mouth earlier.

"What did you do?" Ellis heard him ask, and she let out a sigh and paused. She hated that her man knew her so well.

"Who says I did anything?" She was tempted to ask, and instead followed through with a "I thought she was paying for everything and told her not to waste her trust fund. Callie quickly corrected me."

Thatcher chuckled at the thought of someone putting his wife in her place.

"Really the woman fired up, and our daughter soothed her quite quickly, it was surprising" Ellis told him.

"I want to meet the woman who has captured my little girls heart, and the person who isn't afraid of you." Thatcher informed her. It was enough to cause Ellis to scoff.

"I will call her now and let you know when we have arranged for dinner. " Thatcher stated before Ellis could reply. "I will see you at home" he added "love you."

"You too" Ellis replied as she looked at the handset when she heard her husband hang up. She then reluctantly lowered the receiver back to its place.

There was a time where she had cheated and almost walked away from this life, from her man. Back then she never would have thought that she could be this person, this wife. Now though she couldn't imagine anything different.

... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Meredith had walked Callie back to her office after Addison had returned with their prints. She had left her fiancée there after sharing a brief kiss and a promise of a back rub and warm bath at the end of their shift.

Now, as Meredith made her way up a level to her own office, she couldn't help but daydream about how she was going to spoil Callie tonight. She hoped that they would even get a chance to discuss their wedding. Meredith didn't want to push it back any further, and would be quite happy if they could do something quick and small .

Thinking about finally putting a wedding ring on Callie's finger, she opened her office door. Now that she had the mental image of her gorgeously pregnant Latina in a flowing white dress, Meredith didn't want to think of anything else.

Moving into the room, Meredith heads straight for her desk and pulls a frame out of the box she had brought up from the car just an hour earlier. A smile spread across her face as she pulled the image of her first child out of her pocket. This piece of her that was buried within Callie was going to mean the world to them both.

Taking the time, Meredith placed the image into a frame before setting it carefully on her table, right next to her photo of her and Callie in a loving embrace.

She studied the photo of her and Callie and took in the smile and tenderness of their moment, Callie had her arms wrapped securely around her, her own arms rested on top of Callie's holding them together. Her head was tilted back on Callie's shoulder, she was looking up at her fiancee who in turn was looking down at her. Both had large smiles on their faces. It was a moment that had been captured by Patrick, their friend from work. She had been questioned a number of times why they weren't looking at the camera and she had answered promptly with the - I would rather look at her.

Smiling, Meredith shifted her gaze now to the photo of their baby. She felt like she couldn't ask for much more now as she thought of her family and how it was growing. She could only hope that everything would go smoothly. 'God only knows we don't need the stress of moving again.' She thought as she let her fingers trace over the frame briefly.

Meredith pulled her hand away and stood with every intention of unpacking the rest of the box. She had just pulled her favourite mug and scrub cap out of her box when her phone sounded. Picking it up she saw a text from Callie.

CRAVING A BIG JUICY STEAK AND CHOCOLATE MILKSHAKE

She was informed and Meredith couldn't help but smile as she looked at the time. She knew that it was pushing towards lunch time but knew that she probably shouldn't be leaving the hospital just yet.

Just as Meredith was about to text Callie back, her phone rang.

Looking at the picture of her dad, Meredith hesitated and wasn't sure whether she really wanted to answer. She could only guess that her mother had already called him and informed him of the developments.

"Daddy" Meredith opened after finally deciding to answer her phone.

"Merry" was the response that she received.

If Meredith was honest, she had always been a daddy's girl.

"How are you settling in baby girl?"

Meredith blushed. She couldn't help it.

"Dad" Meredith sighed, "it is coming along."

"And Calliope?" He pushed

Meredith let out a groan. "Is gloriously pregnant and doing well."

"Don't let on to your mother that I knew that you and Calliope were looking at having a child together. As much as I love the woman and she loves me- she would skin me alive." Her father warned her.

"Don't worry I won't" Meredith giggled.

She had called her father and informed him of their decision after debating the decision multiple times.

Keeping her father informed of the steps of her life had been almost instinct, her mother on the other hand, not so much.

"So she called you?" Meredith asked as she realised that her father had gone completely quiet on the other end of the phone.

"She did" she heard her father respond.

"And?" Meredith prompted.

"She indicated that she has foot in mouth disease" he told her and Meredith was sure that he had a grin on his face. " do you know anything about that?"

Meredith giggled.

"She also told me that Calliope stood up to her and made it clear that she has paid for the house here in Seattle." Thatcher pressed and Meredith groaned.

"I thought I had made it clear that I would buy you a house if you returned to Seattle." He pressed.

"Daddy" Meredith sounded. She really didn't want to butt heads with her father.

"I want you to explain to me over dinner how it came about that not only have I not purchased your family home, but also how your fiancée has managed to rule that decision." He pushed.

"We can have dinner, but dad, Calliope is a proud woman and she won't bow down to you and your wishes to provide for us. " Meredith informed and she knew that once Callie's dad met her own he would have a clear understanding of why.

Meredith heard her father huff. "Look dad," Meredith started, hoping to tread a little carefully. "We love each other very much and there are steps we need to take as a couple without our parents paying for us. I promise if there is anything that we need that we can't provide for ourselves than we will call."

Meredith knew that it wasn't easy to placate her dad when he was used to being able to provide for her. "I need to go now dad. Text me with dinner details." She said as she thought about her pending lunch date with her fiancée.

"I love you" she said when she heard her father respond. She then listened as he hung up the phone. Closing her eyes, Meredith tried to focus on the fact that he hadn't put up much of a fight on the phone and she really hoped that he wouldn't be too difficult over dinner.

The thought of dinner was enough to remind Meredith of the text message that she had received from her beloved fiancée.

A small smile stretched over her face and Meredith reached over and picked up the picture of her and Callie again and ran her fingers over the tanned arm of her fiancée. There was nothing that could really describe the way Callie has made her feel and grow up. There was something about her that had changed the way she even thought of herself. Pulling herself out of the awe she was suddenly feeling for her Callie, Meredith heard her phone buzz and realised she still hadn't text a reply

STEAK?

Callie seemed to ask.

ON MY WAY

Meredith replied as a small smile graced her features and she closed her screen and slipped the phone back into her pocket. Shifting the frame back into place Meredith looked briefly at the ultrasound image from earlier. A warmth spread through her and she knew that there was nothing in the world that she could possibly love more.

Reaching for her keys and her jacket. Meredith slung her bag over her shoulder and made her way out of the room and towards the love of her life.


	4. Chapter 4

**Someone asked when Maura and Jane would be entering this fic. I promise its very soon.**

Ellis Grey hadn't been surprised when her husband had called to confirm their dinner plans for the evening. He always had a way of getting their daughter to meet with them even when she was angry with something that both of them had done. Knowing that he had managed to deal with that side of her made Ellis feel at ease that maybe she had a chance to redeem herself in the eyes of her child . She knew that it wouldn't always be an easy feat but hoped that an apology and whatever Thatcher could come up with in the mean time would assist in their daughter and her fiancée not running for the hills.

Looking down at her paper work, Ellis sighed. She hadn't been anywhere near the OR for the past two days thanks to this great pile of rubbish that had built up on her desk. "it's what you get for hogging the damn room the other day." Ellis heard her head tell her, and she let out another sigh as she lowered her head to rest upon her desk. When she had aspired to be chief she had never expected it to entail so much crap.

Closing her eyes, Ellis ignored the sound of her stomach rumbling as well as the accompanying knock on the door, both which she knew were annoying and completely unrelated.

Slowly lifting her head, she opened her eyes to see Dr Shepherd walk in. She could see a soft smile forming on his face and knew without a word that he had caught her with her eyes closed. Before she had a chance to ask him what he wanted, the mans wife - her niece and their best friend slipped in behind him.

Ellis's gaze shifted to Addison before moving on to Dr Sloan. "What do I owe the pleasure for such a visit?" Ellis asked.

The three doctors in front of her seemed to look between each other before returning their eyes back to her. "The chicken has flown the coop." Mark Sloan had said as if he thought he was being quite creative. Ellis just raised her eyebrows at him .

"We were wondering whether you would be interested in coming to Joes for a lunch" Addison informed her, after she made a point of slapping at Marks shoulder. "It seems to be the place to eat." She added knowing that Ellis would catch on.

Ellis smiled softly at her niece. "Is that so?" She asked and all three people nodded.

Looking down at her paper work, Ellis knew that she really shouldn't be going anywhere for a sit down meal but admitted that she needed some form of a break.

"Come on Elle," Addison encouraged, "you know you want to spy..."

Ellis tilted her head to consider the offer a little more, as she did her stomach cried out for food once more.

"The noise speaks for itself" Derek spoke, and as he did, moved around the desk to help his wife's aunt, his boss, out of her seat.

"Fine" Ellis sounded before turning to look at Mark Sloan. "Are you coming too or will you be able to stay back and hold the fort?" She asked.

"I'll stay" Mark promptly replied. Ellis gave a quick nod as she took Derek's offered hand, before standing.

"Good, make sure there isn't mayhem." Ellis warned before allowing Derek to lead her to the door.

"So they're eating at Joes?" Ellis asked as she walked with them out of her office. Maybe she would get another view of her future daughter in law.

...Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart

Calliope was relieved when Meredith arrived and escorted her to the Emerald City Bar, a place Meredith had told her would satisfy all of her cravings. She had steak on the brain from the moment she had returned to her office and begun to unpack and it had taken her an hour to allow herself to give into those cravings.

Now, as Meredith held her hand across the table, she couldn't stop her leg from bouncing with the anticipation for her lunch. She knew that Meredith would consider her bizarre but it was the only thing that she had craved so far and she wasn't too sure what to think of it.

She watched as her fiancée rolled her engagement ring around using her thumb and wondered just how long it would take for Meredith to crack and push the notion of the wedding. Callie had to admit that she found it highly amusing that her partner who once suffered from commitment phobia was now eager to get hitched, she didn't want to ask herself why the woman was now in a rush because a part of her wanted to rush down the aisle too. With the baby coming, and the move across the country, she wasn't sure whether they could handle another big thing to organise, but Meredith was determined.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Meredith asked and Callie couldn't help but smile at Meredith. She very rarely used the one liners correctly but this had been one she had mastered while in Miami. Most likely, Callie reminded herself, because she herself had a tendency to use that one a lot.

"Just thinking of you" Callie decided to tell her somewhat truthfully. She didn't want to broach the subject of the wedding herself, but in admitting that she was thinking about her fiancee while waiting for her food she knew she could truly open up the flirt fest that they skipped around of late.

"Care to further develop that?" She heard Meredith ask, as a foot slipped out of a shoe and up her leg.

Callie withheld from making a sound and instead widened her legs slightly and gripped Meredith's hand tightly. "Don't stir unless you intend on following through." Callie told her and Meredith giggled in response. "I'm like a horny bear right now and we haven't had sex in a week." Callie warned.

"What would you do to me?" Meredith teased before blushing red, realising that Joe the bar man had brought their food out to them.

"Don't mind me" Joe spoke, and Callie couldn't help but smile further at how embarrassed Meredith was at being caught out talking dirty. "We get all sorts around here, besides Meredith, it's good to see you still have game."

Callie waited for the bar man to walk away, struggling to hold in her laughter as well as trying not to think about the mans words. How did he know that her fiancée had game previously?

"Oh god!" Callie heard Meredith sound once Joe was far enough away. She felt the hand of Meredith's moving out of grasp and she quickly closed her own firmly around it.

"How about I tell you what I would do, once I have devoured this." Callie told Meredith as she lifted her hand and kissed it gently.

Meredith blushed from the attention, before giving Callie's a hand a squeeze in return.

"This looks and smells amazing." Callie pushed on , wanting Meredith to relax.

Meredith smiled slightly before Callie let her withdraw her hand so that she could begin to eat.

Slicing into her steak, Callie slowly lost herself in her food. She closed her eyes to savior each bite, her craving for now, fulfilled

... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Meredith had found it hard to concentrate on her food from the moment she had watched Calliope close her eyes and let out a soft appreciative moan when she bit into the steak. She found that her body seemed to react instantly and the heat she had felt from embarrassment, moments before was quickly being replaced by the heat that was associated with desire.

Meredith picked at some of her fries while she took in her fiancees appearance. It was true what they said about pregnant women glowing. She had thought it quite ridiculous when she had first heard about it, but now she wasn't so sure.

Calliope Torres had never looked hotter and Meredith wasn't sure why she hadn't stopped and taken a good look at her fiancée recently. Yes she had loved her and shown her that love, but with all the moving and organisation for their trip across the country, she hadn't been able to completely stop and look at Callie and see the true effects of her pregnancy.

A smile started to cross her face as she watched as the subject of her affection lifted another piece of steak to her mouth.

"What?" Callie asked once she finished chewing and Meredith realised that she must have been staring at her.

"Just taking you in." Meredith responded and was not completely sure how it sounded to her fiancée.

"Hmmm" Callie sounded and Meredith looked at her carefully waiting to see if she would continue her response.

Deciding to give her fiancée that little more to ease her she added, "we've been so busy I am not sure I have given myself the chance to just completely take you in. You look beautiful."

"Your saying this because the morning sickness has eased and you are hoping to get laid aren't you?" Callie questioned and Meredith couldn't help but shake her head. She was a little disappointed that her fiancée could think so little of her but then again, Callie, herself, had admitted to feeling horny earlier.

"I'm saying it because this is the first time we have sat and ate a meal together in a place that's not beside a toilet or in bed. These past 3 months since we conceived the baby. I don't think either of us has stopped long enough to truly appreciate each other." Meredith told Callie as she decided to make herself cut into her steak.

Meredith then watched as Callie seemed to consider all that she had just said before giving a nod of acceptance.

"You do know that I love you right?" Meredith heard Callie ask, and Meredith took in the emotion that was thick in her voice and the evidence of tears in her eyes, damn hormones.

"Of course" Meredith sounded as she reached for Callie's hands "I was just saying that we've been busy.

Meredith watched as Callie took a breath to steady herself "I don't want you to think..." Callie started and Meredith quickly stood, causing her to stop. She moved swiftly around the table and slid onto the bench seat beside Callie.

"Shush" Meredith sounded as she wrapped her arm around Callie. "I didn't mean anything bad." Meredith told her. She turned Callie's face so that it was now close to her own. Lifting her hand Meredith cupped Callie's cheek.

"I love you, you're amazing. You are everything I want and need." Meredith told her before leaning in to kiss her, she hoped she could kiss away this latest wave of worry.

In pulling back, Meredith reached over for her plate and cutlery.

"I'm enjoying being with you." Meredith told Callie as she settled with her food. "I'm sorry I upset you."

...Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Ellis watched as her daughter kissed her fiancée and noted the concern in her eyes. She had just arrived at Joes and while she longed for a drink and food, she couldn't take her eyes off of the couple.

"Elle, what do you want to eat? Derek will order." Addison told her.

"El?" Addison said again, while Derek came to a stop right in front of her, blocking her view.

"I'll have what Meredith is having." She told her before she began to move past Derek and towards Meredith .

"El" Derek said as he tried to stop her from walking towards Meredith.

"Once you've ordered pull up a seat and let's join the happy couple. I don't want to play spy." Ellis told them before continuing on towards the table.

She watched the couple as she did, the change in their body language, their obvious ease with each other. She hoped they could stay comfortable when she intended on crashing what could possibly be an intimate moment. God only knew how much she hated being disturbed during couples time with Thatch.

"May I join?" She asked as she came to a stop at the end of the table, pulling the now eating couple away from their meal.

Ellis watched as Callie stiffened, while Meredith simply looked up at her mother.

Ellis didn't make a move to sit, which normally she wouldn't have waited for consent, but this time she paused long enough to see an obvious exchange between Meredith and Callie before Meredith gave a sharp nod.

Ellis let out a relieved sigh before she slid into the booth across from the women.

Smiling softly at her daughter she waited for Addison to join her on the bench seat before thinking it wise to talk.

"Calliope I wish to apologise to you for my behaviour this morning. I sometimes find it quite difficult to keep my concerns to myself, but you must understand, Meredith is my only child and Thatch and I tend to be quite protective of her."

"Mum" Meredith sounded in warning, but Ellis quickly waved her off. "It's all I wanted to say on the matter." She advised Meredith.

Meredith nodded, and Ellis watched as she reached for Callie's hand to hold it tight.

"Please don't let us keep you from your food, Derek is just ordering our as well." Addison advised.

Ellis watched as Meredith let go of Callie's hand and took a hold of her cutlery, but not before Callie leaned briefly into her.


	5. Chapter 5

**So im not 100% happy with this update, but here goes. Jane and Maura will enter in 2 more updates :)**

Lunch had been quite peaceful considering the company. Meredith had been relieved that her mother had left things at the simple apology and Addison had pushed off with the remaining conversation.

Now though, as Meredith prepared to leave the hospital knowing that she and Callie would be joining her parents for dinner at a nearby hotel, she contemplated what she would wear, and whether Callie would even want to go to dinner. She herself had already decided to broach the subject of their wedding and she didn't want to bombard her fiancée with everything.

Grabbing her light jacket and bag, Meredith moved towards the door with the thoughts of grabbing the elevator down to orthopaedics to meet up with Callie. She had thought about messaging her to let her know she was on her way, but decided to hold off, maybe she could surprise her with a little bit of romance.

Moving off of the elevator, Meredith looked around the ward that would become increasingly familiar to her before moving in the direction that Callie's office was.

She felt something in the pit of her stomach stir when she saw that the door was closed and the blinds to her fiancées windows were closed. Meredith couldn't help but wonder whether Callie had gone home without telling her.

She had only once encountered a closed door and blinds drawn when it came to Callie, and it hadn't been a fond memory for either of them.

Testing the door handle, Meredith found the door to be unlocked. Tapping the door slightly with her knuckle, Meredith then proceeded to turn the knob and make her way into the room.

It was dark inside, but the sound of a soft sigh, drew her attention towards the couch present in the office. Meredith left the door ajar so that there was a touch of light to give her eyes a chance to adjust.

"Cal?" Meredith asked softly, and moved a little closer to the couch. Her eyes adjusted enough to take in the sight of her fiancée laying a sleep on the couch.

Letting out a sound of relief she moved forward and tried not to think of that day two years ago when things could have gone terribly wrong for them both.

"Hmmm" Callie sounded and Meredith slowly bent down to press a kiss to her fiancées lips. She took a moment to suck on Callie's bottom lip before moving to pull back, a little surprised when Callies hand snaked up to hold her there.

"Hey" Meredith spoke when she finally was released.

"Hey" Callie responded, as she seemed to be adjusting to being awake.

"You ready to go home?" Meredith asked, hoping to remove the memories of the past from her mind as she tried to focus on their future.

"Yeah" Callie sounded and Meredith moved back to allow her to get up.

"Dad and mom are expecting us at Panorotties tonight, we should have some time to get ready." Meredith informed her.

"Or we could go home, get naked and eat pizza." Callie responded. Meredith wasn't sure if she had realised the uncertainty she had been feeling when she had entered the room, or even when she pulled back from the kiss. Meredith hadn't always been able to mask her emotions.

"We could, but..." Meredith trailed off in thought.

"Mer?" Callie asked.

Trying to recover, "we could eat dinner with my parents, eliminate that issue and then come home and have dessert in bed." She said as she reached a hand out to Callie, offering to help her up.

"But" Callie started and Meredith pulled her towards her, slipping her arms around the other woman.

"Please" Meredith sounded.

"Mer?" Callie sounded in response and Meredith watched as something dawned on her. "What's wrong?" Callie asked and Meredith shook her head.

"No...nothing" Meredith told Callie as she leaned into her, wanting to just push back the memories and be with her fiancée. She rarely thought of that day, they had come along way since then.

Meredith felt Callie push her back and watched as she scanned the room.

"My blinds are down, the lights are off." Callie noted. "And let me guess, my door was closed?"

Meredith couldn't do anything but nod at her fiancées words. She watched as Callie stepped back from her, bringing her hands up to run over her face.

"It was two years ago." Callie spoke and Meredith could only sigh.

"I would never, not again."

"I know" Meredith responded. "I just..."

"I'm pregnant, the first trimester always makes people tired." Callie went on.

"I know" Meredith said again, and took a step towards Callie.

"If I could take back the past..." Callie went to start and Meredith followed through once more with an

"I know" there was nothing more either of them could say.

They stood staring at each other, thoughts whirling in both their heads and Meredith knew that she needed to do something to undo her doubt and the concern that she triggered in the Latina.

"I love you" Meredith spoke as she took Callie's hands. "It was a long time ago and we are in a far better place than we were then. It was just a memory."

Meredith watched Callie close her eyes and lean into her hand that she had brought up to rest on Callie's cheek. She didn't speak or make a sound but seemed to be savouring her touch.

"Cal" Meredith started but stopped when Callie shook her head 'no' at her.

"Kiss me" Callie ordered and Meredith leaned into capture her fiancées lips. What she had intended as a short simple kiss developed into something more when Callie held her there and began to explore her mouth.

In pulling back, Meredith noted that Callie's eyes were suddenly back open and were now looking straight into her own.

"Let's go to dinner. But once we're done, I'm going to remind you just how much I am yours." Callie told her.

Meredith nodded, not knowing what to say as Callie's mouth came down on hers once more. She savoured her kiss and waited until Callie pulled back once more "promise?" She asked only to see Callie nod.

"Promise".

... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Callie fixed the blouse that she had just buttoned up, noting that she would soon need to buy some more due to her further swelling breasts. Once she had her top done up, she looked across the room towards Meredith who seemed to have remained quiet from the time she had been in the office at the hospital. The look that had been in her eyes had been something that had managed to haunt her for a while, and it hadn't helped to see it again tonight. Callie couldn't help but wonder what it was that she could do to keep that look off Meredith's face. She was sure that she had shown that she was committed to the woman, they were engaged! Between that and the child now growing inside of her - there wasn't much more she could do to show that she was in this and would always be there and come home to her.

Reaching for her pants, she began to step into them, turning her eyes away from Meredith as she begun to pull them over her calves and up towards her thighs.

"Is this dress okay?" She heard Meredith ask and Callie turned to look at her fiancée once more. Meredith had turned to face her now wearing a slim fitting black dress with a small slit up the side.

Callie took her time studying her before giving a nod. "You look beautiful." Callie informed her as she attempted to button up her pants and having no luck.

Callie sighed before looking towards the dresser where her new black maternity pants resided. She let her pants fall back down and then stepped out of them. Before she could move much further, Meredith was upon her, hands on her waist. Callie lifted her gaze to her fiancées and was surprised when she felt her hand move from her hip over to the small pouch that had formed at the base of her abdomen. "Gorgeous" Meredith murmured as she quickly stole a kiss, her other hand staying on Callie's hip as her fingers traced over her panty line.

Callie let her head rest against Meredith's for a while. They stood there, caught in a moment that seemed so simple and yet so much passed through the two of them in their exchange. It felt as though both had 1000 thoughts whirling through their heads. They seemed to clash and bang and Callie was unsure what to think of the display of affection despite everything. Finally Meredith pulled back, letting her hands fall. "You should finish getting dressed" Meredith said softly, and was cut off by Callie as she blurted out her own words "let's get married".

Callie had a smile on her face as she watched as Meredith did a double take. "What?"

"Let's get married" Callie repeated.

Callie watched as a frown crossed over Meredith's face. "Are you proposing again?" She asked. Meredith faulted on the spot, her hands moving to touch Callie and then dropping again.

"No," Callie told her as she reached for Meredith flailing hands. She swallowed as she thought of the consequences of her statement. "I'm saying let's get married now. I'm sorry to have made you wait this long."

"Is this because of earlier in your office?" Meredith quickly asked. She didn't want to be rushing her fiancée down the aisle just because she had a moment of fear.

"Yes and no." Callie replied and Meredith could see that she was now thinking carefully about what she was going to say.

" yes, because I hate seeing you feel insecure about us. Your the only one I want; the mother to our child." She paused for a second and watched as Meredith processed what she had already said, "but no, in the fact that in this moment right now. We are already a family - a unit - and I want us to be official."

Callie then pulled Meredith to her once more. "I'm sorry for making you wait." She told her as she leant in and kissed her once more, both women losing themselves in the kiss.

"Ok" Meredith finally sounded and Callie couldn't help but beam at her as she leant in to kiss her once more. "Is that a yes? Or an ok for the explanation I have given?" Callie queried when she pulled back - worried that she had jumped to conclusions.

"It's an okay, we can get married." Meredith replied and Callie did a random happy dance before kissing her fiancée once more.

"Dinner first though." Meredith prompted and Callie pulled a face as both their stomachs grumbled in unison.


	6. Chapter 6

**So this is the last update before I introduce the cross over. I hope you all enjoy**

With Callie's fingers threaded securely through her own, Meredith entered the restaurant located in her fathers latest hotel.

She had not eaten at this particular restaurant before , but her father was never one to eat somewhere that didn't have good portions of food at sensible prices (although she did know that he optimised the fanciful luxuries by extending his fine dining enterprises).

Squeezing Callie's hand, Meredith then let go to make a point of opening the door for her fiancée. She rested a hand on the small of her back as she followed her through the door before continuing in the direction of her father.

A waitress made a move towards them, but stopped when she realised which direction they were heading.

"Mer" Callie breathed as she stopped, Meredith almost running into the back of her. Callie turned to face her for a moment and Meredith was unsure of what she was going to say or do.

"You okay?" Meredith asked as she shifted her hand that had been on her fiancées back and now rested it gently on her hip.

Meredith watched as Callie bit her lip as she thought of what words she was going to say.

"I'm finally meeting your parents." Callie finally stated and Meredith nodded.

"I'm 3 months pregnant and meeting your parents" she added.

Meredith rolled her eyes but nodded.

"Are you sure we didn't do this back to front?" Callie asked and it was enough for Meredith to chuckle. "Meredith" Callie said with a warning tone.

"We did it just right." Meredith told her as she watched as her father stood and began to make his way towards them.

Callie let out a sigh and turned to see her future father in law walking towards them. "Crap" she sounded and Meredith giggled as her hand drifted back to its place on the small of Callie's back.

"Just breathe baby" Meredith told her and she felt Callie stiffen slightly before relaxing.

"Everything okay over here?" Thatcher Grey asked and Meredith beamed at her father.

"Just a few meeting the parents jitters." Meredith responded honestly.

Callie groaned and Meredith chucked. "I was a lot worse when I met her father." Meredith told him honestly.

Meredith then stepped around her fiancée to embrace her father. No words were spoken as he dipped his head to kiss her forehead. When Meredith pulled back she turned her attention to Callie. "As you know dad, this is Calliope, my fiancée."

Meredith then stepped out of the way so they could interact and watched as her father greeted her with a kiss on the cheek and a "welcome to the family."

Meredith then reached for Callies hand and guided her towards the table, she followed the route her father had taken and watched as her mother stood to greet them both.

She smiled briefly at her mother before ushering Callie into her seat. Meredith didn't always take on these roles but knew that she needed to with Callie not only being pregnant but also nervousness.

Meredith almost let out a giggle though, for when she looked up from what she was doing, she noticed her father doing the same.

"How did your first day go girls?" Thatcher asked and Meredith smiled at her father as he attempted to engage them in a conversation.

"It was ok," Meredith responded before looking to Callie for her answer.

"I am still at the stage where I am quite lethargic, so it was good to have the day to just unpack and settle in." Callie told them and Meredith slid her hand under the table and rested it on her fiancées thigh.

Conversation seemed to stem from that comment and soon Meredith and Callie found themselves talking about the baby and their pending nuptials. Meredith had watched as Callie glowed and rested her hand on the small pouch that had formed. She wasn't sure that she could love her fiancée any more than what she already did.

"So what date have you both decided on?" Ellis asked and Meredith simply shrugged her shoulders.

"It was my fault that we kept putting it off." Callie told them. "I wanted to meet you both first. But now reality has hit and I'm 3 months pregnant in a new city and only Meredith around. I guess it's better to do it now than to wait a few more months."

Ellis looked and Thatcher and Meredith watched them communicate without words. It took a few moments before Thatcher spoke. "If you would like," he began. "I can arrange for the wedding to be put together in the next month."

Meredith looked at Callie and begged her to agree. "We both want something small." She told him.

He nodded and Meredith could only hope that he would agree with small and would allow the small.

"Close family and friends." Callie told him. "Small and intimate"

Meredith smiled as she leant in and pressed a kiss to Callie's cheek, glad that things were going well.

"If you get a list to me by the weekend, I can get Melissa on it." Thatcher stated.

Meredith felt Callie rest her head upon her shoulder and she moved her hand from her fiancées knee and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.

"Dinner and then bed time." Meredith promised and she kissed her forehead, never having dreamt that she could be this affectionate in front of her parents.

Meredith looked up just in time to see her mother smile at her father. She knew it wasn't often that people outside their family ever really saw the more gentle natured side of her mother but it was there.

Things went quiet from that moment on. It was a peaceful and pleasant meal. Nothing would have indicated that on the other side of the country things were stirring that would draw the family into a new light.


	7. Chapter 7

**introducing Jane and Maura from Rizzoli and Isles- i hope you enjoy**

Jane Rizzoli looked over at her wife. She was still amazed that she was able to call her, wife, especially after what had happened over the past 6 months.

She had to wonder whether Maura realised how difficult things had been for her, not just after their falling out but also their volatile rekindling. She was still unsure of how stable their marriage was.

Paddy Doyle had been the cause of their falling out. Until the revelation that he was her biological father, they had been madly in love. Jane was completely besotted with her wife.

She had met Maura in the later stages of working in VICE. She had been undercover and dressed as a hooker in the Department 1 cafe. It had been the start of their whirlwind romance, which had seen their nuptials taken just months before she had been nailed to the floor with a set of scalpels. There was a time that Jane had thought that it would be the lowest and most difficult time of their marriage. It had definitely been a brutal reminder of the dangers of being a cop. Maura, had been absolutely fantastic, supportive and upheld the values of their vows which had included the traditional 'for better or worse.'

They had hit a new low when Paddy Doyle had revealed himself to Maura after the death of her biological brother to a rival mobster. He had intended on keeping her safe and Jane had been quite willing to assist him in doing that. She wasn't ready to lose her wife for no reason and that included the fact that her biological father was in the hierarchy of Irish warfare in Boston.

Things had resolved and settled. Maura had been supportive after she had shot herself to injure and take down a dirty cop, had pulled her out of her rut and took her to receive her medal for the process. Maura had assisted her in dealing with the fact that her father had up and left her mother, graciously inviting her mother in law, Jane's mother, to take over the guest house. Jane had thought that the offer had been a bit too generous and while being vocal about not wanting her mother living in the guest house, so close to their private domain, she had appreciated the gesture considering they had just sold her own condo weeks before the event.

Jane knew that she had done things so that the relationship wasn't all one sided, which included helping her wife build a positive relationship with her mother and father after many years of neglect. She had also loved the woman completely and tolerated the ever increasing shoe collection that was building in the hallway closet.

Their fall out had been the biggest defining moment of their relationship. It had emphasised her role as a police officer and exposed the emotions that her wife had been suppressing towards her biological father.

Before the shooting of Paddy Doyle, Jane knew that Maura felt a connection with the man. She also knew that her wife was doing her best to ignore it as she didn't want to be associated to the stories that she had heard about him. All it took though was for Maura to see Paddy as the man who had come to her defence and suddenly the shift that had occurred in their marriage was immense.

Jane could still see it now, the undercover op, the over zealous Maura. She had been nervous about agreeing to send her into the operation, especially after whoever she was going to encounter had already tried to run down Maura and her mother after they had consumed dinner. Jane would have preferred to have found a way to handle to operation alone. She had wanted to protect her wife by keeping her out of this and safe as well.

When gunshots were fired, she, Korsak and Frost had been quick to burst into the room. Jane's heart had been racing with fear of what she would find. There had been a man on the ground next to her wife and Paddy Doyle was standing above them on an uneven walk way, gun in hand. She had raised her gun and kept it trained on him, knowing that he was already a wanted man by the department and needing to follow procedure. When Special Agent Gabriel Dean had burst in and raised his gun, shots had been fired, including one of her own. She had been the person to bring Paddy Doyle down and it had been an act that tore her wife from her arms.

The way Maura had looked at her, the way she had spoken to her not only straight after the shooting but the couple of months that had followed, had ripped Jane apart and left her questioning everything her marriage was and whether it would even survive.

It had been a case that had brought them back together, or more so the shoving of her mother and partner to make them sit in a car together to go investigate a connection to a murder. She could have lost her wife on that trip and having to do a fasciotomy on her wife's legs and then trying and protect her while waiting for some form of assistance had opened her eyes to just how much she wanted her wife to be with her still.

It was the time that her wife was restricted to a hospital bed that had assisted them. They had been able to talk about their demons, see each others side of things and had agreed to attempt to rebuild their marriage.

It had only been a couple of months since then and while Jane loved her wife as much if not more than before, she still was unsure of how stable they actually were.

"Jane" Maura huffed on seeing Jane looking at her despite having tried to hide it.

Jane had made a point of looking away again.

They had recently departed the gaol that was holding her father in law and while they had not spoken about the visit, of which Jane had not been privy to the conversation between father and daughter, she had been wanting to know. She knew that her wife might not want to talk to her about it all, but also knew that they had agreed on no secrets. That rule had been more so for her, especially after the surprise arrival of Special Agent Dean at the undercover op months previously. It also helped that her wife couldnt lie to her.

Jane shook her head as she attempted to keep her eyes focused on the road in front of her. If Maura didn't want to talk to her and tell her what had happened during their meeting then she wasn't going to push.

A part of her was tense with worry, her wife was rarely silent, unless she was pissed off at her and then it was the silent game which usually had her begging for mercy by the time the day was through.

Putting on her indicator to turn the car onto the motorway, Jane tried to relax and ignore the obvious tension in the car.

"Can we just go home tonight, I dont really feel like going out to dinner now." Maura finally speaks and Jane spares her wife a moments look. She lifted a hand to rub at her temple before giving a nod. She felt like she wanted to burst and she knew that it was a good thing that her wife no longer wanted to go out as all it would end up causing an explosion in a very public place.

The time slipped by on the motorway and as they neared the turn off for home, Jane felt Maura slip her hand onto Janes thigh.

Jane lifted an eyebrow to the action, but didn't say or do anything more. She had always liked how Maura wanted to maintain contact with her, even during the most basic things like driving to or from work.

Soon they both found themselves in front of the Beacon Hill house that had been very much Mauras when they had first met and had slowly became a home to Jane. It had changed slightly during the time between their first date and now, with the added basketball hoop attached to the garage being one of the more noticeable changes.

Slowly Jane removed herself from the car. She had made her way to the front door before looking back and realising that Maura was still seated in the car. Turning towards the vehicle, Jane was not sure whether she should go to her wife and help her, or to leave her be. She knew that there were times when Maura just needed a moment to gather her thoughts. She just hoped that it was followed by a talk that would indicate what it was that had been shared.

Jane decided not to enter her house without her wife and instead took a seat next to the door. She settled in on the step there and waited patiently. Her eyes never leaving her wife who appeared to be looking down at something that was now in her hands.


	8. Chapter 8

**Sorry about the wait - i hope you enjoy. Again, these characters are not mine.**

Maura had tried to ignore the fact that Jane was waiting for her by the back door. She had watched her sit, resting her back against the side of the house. Maura knew that Jane wasn't always a patient woman and the fact that she was itching to ask about the events tonight was a perfect example of this.

Maura wasn't sure whether she wanted to tell her wife about the photo her father had slipped her. She had also received a name that went with the photo and still she was unsure of what she wanted to do about it.

Slipping the photo into her purse, Maura looked to see that her wife had her head in her hands and appeared to be almost napping. After a long day like today, between work and the drive, she was prepared for a sleepy Jane. She just wasn't sure whether she really wanted to be dealing with it right now.

Taking the time to remove her belt, Maura then eased her way out of the car. She was sure to keep her purse close, not wanting to give her wife a chance to pry if that was what her plan was.

She didn't always think that her wife would pry into things, but after everything that had happened over the last 6 months, she knew that her wife was a detective first and foremost.

Maura still hated the fact that Jane had shot her father. It wasn't the way anything was supposed to go. However, when she spoke with the man on one of her under the radar visits to him within the prison, he had revealed to her that he most likely would have shot Jane based on the fact that she was a cop.

His revelation had been enough to make her open her eyes and examine everything about the man and her wife. Maura had the scene replay in her head a thousand times before she had come to realise that her wife may be a detective who had shot her father, but she was also the woman who loved her whole heartedly and would be there for her as she had been from the moment that they had met.

Jane, to Maura, was a lover, a wife, a best friend and her partner. She knew that she couldn't walk away from that for a man who had really just rocked up randomly once or twice. It wasn't how things worked.

Carefully closing the door, Maura moved towards her wife and rested her hand on her shoulder. She then gave it a quick squeeze before taking her own keys and opening the door. Once she knew the door was open, she held a hand out to her wife and waited.

Jane had been hesitant to take her hand. Maura had seen this from the moment she had lifted her head from her hands.

"Come on baby," Maura said, she was not usually one for that particular term of endearment, but she had really felt that she needed to show her wife that things weren't pointless despite how it might look in that moment.

Maura paused a moment while she waited for Jane to stand and was hurt that Jane didn't take her own hand before entering the house.

Deciding not to say anything, as she really didn't want to be put in any awkward moments where she could spew out anything about what was going on with her right now, Maura followed Jane into the house.

She took her time putting things away and making sure that the door was locked and secure. Maura then followed Jane through the house, passed the kitchen and straight to the foot of the stairs.

While it wasn't early enough for bed, Maura had to assume that it was what her wife was considering as she had been the one to sit tiredly on the top step. She was surprised to find that her wife didn't just fall on the bed as she was predicting, but had instead walked straight past it and towards the bathroom. Noting that the door wasn't closed, Maura decided to follow her wife into the room.

There Jane stood, leaning over the bath tub. She had already turned the taps on and was now adding the body shop bath mixture that she tended to favour.

Maura simply stood back and watched as her wife prepared the bath tub. She wasn't going to assume that she was going to be invited to join as she knew that sometimes her wife could be funny about those sorts of things.

Jane dropped her pants first and Maura's eyes skimmed over the tanned legs that had appeared. She loved her wife's legs more than she thought it was possible to like a piece of somebody, from the way they stood slender yet firm to the way they could wrap around her body in sleep or during intercourse. Maura resisted the urge to go to her wife in that moment, even if it was simply to touch the bare legs in front of her.

Jane turned away from her when she removed her shirt, the shyness being something she was familiar with. Still Maura studied her strong firm back and it was then that she realised that she couldn't just stand back and examine her wife as she performed the simple act of undressing.

Maura moved to her wife before she could progress further with the removal of her bra and boy short underwear. Her own pale hands came to rest on her wifes' hips before she stepped up so that her front was pressing against her wife's back. Her hands slipping over the body with familiarity and love.

"Maur" She heard Jane say and she wondered whether she was going to protest about the intrusion that had been presented. Maura ignored her though and brushed her lips across one of her wife's shoulder blades.

"Am i joining you in the tub?" Maura asked as her hands came to rest, one of her wife's stomach and the other just under her breast, enough for her thumb to lift and caress its underside.

Jane seemed to hum her response before she could gather any thoughts and Maura smirked into her wife's back. "No sex." Jane told her as she carefully turned in her wife's arms. "Just a bath."

Maura nodded, she could agree to those terms and conditions as she was more than prepared to simply bathe with her wife.

With the nod of acceptance, Jane reached out and began to undo the buttons on her wife's blouse. Maura simply stood and let her wife undress her. She didn't make an effort to turn it into something more. She really didn't have the desire to.

Once naked, Jane moved forward to sit down at one end of the bath tub, bending her knees once comfortable to allow for Maura to slip in once she was ready. Maura watched her carefully as she sat down opposite her. She wasn't sure if there was anything she really wanted to say to her now that they were in the tub.

This was not how they would normally share a bath tub. Maura knew that, yet she wasn't surprised with the shift of things as this would occasionally occur when she knew Jane was unhappy but still wanting her close. Normally it would be Jane who rested her back against the tub while she nestled into the tub in front of her. It would be an opportunity for Jane to hold her and a chance for Maura to massage Jane's damaged hands.

Not wanting Jane to push her into speaking about the visit with her dad, but wanting to reassure her that everything between them was still fine, Maura encouraged Jane to stretch her legs out. Once she had, she sat one of her own conveniently at her wife's peak while lifting one of Jane's feet onto her lap so she could massage it.

Jane had not said anything in regards to the shift or the gentle rubbings of her feet by her wife. Maura wondered whether their whole time in the tub was going to be one held in silence.

It had been at least 10 minutes since she had swapped the foot she was massaging for the other and had accidentally tilted her own foot which connected with her wife's apex; still they had not talked.

Maura knew that she needed to be the one to break the silence as it was her and her own reaction to what happened at the gaol which had led to her wife being shut out and almost dismissive. It was progress in the fact that she had been let in the tub.

"Jane" Maura spoke, putting the other foot down to rest. It was only then that her wife looked up. "Are we ok?" she asked, her hands moving to rest on the shins of her wife as she voiced the question.

Jane looked at her carefully before looking away again. Maura wasn't sure what to think when he wife pulled her legs away and moved to stand. It seemed that her plan to ease her wife and talk to her about the fact that she needed to process what she had just heard from her father, was not going to plan. She needed time and she had hoped that Jane was able to give her that.

"Jane" she spoke again, her nerves breaking into her voice as she watched as her wife stepped out of the tub before gently wrapping a towel around herself.

"When you're ready to confide in me and tell me what the hells going on." Jane spoke, not even looking at her. "Than we might be a semblance of okay."

With that, Maura watched as her wife made her way out of the bathroom and into the adjoining bedroom to prepare for bed.

…Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Jane knew that she may have been hard on her wife when she hadn't looked at her and uttered the words that fell from her lips, but those words gave her wife the insight she needed to see just exactly where her head was at.

On retreating to the bedroom, she had gathered her pyjama bottoms and singlet top before proceeding to the guest bedroom down the hall. It had basically been her bedroom during their whole rift and it seemed to be the safe zone for her. A place where she could let out everything she was keeping inside.

She wished that her wife was still her safe zone. There was a time when Jane thought she couldn't live without her, but these days, especially after the shooting, it seemed that everything had changed. She felt as though the shift had shown her that she didn't need her wife as much, that she could still breathe and bleed without her wife.

Letting out a sigh, Jane climbed into the bed and curled up under the covers. She didn't want to consider her life without Maura, she had been put in positions as a detective where she could have lost her life and Maura's, yet they stayed strong for each other. The scars on her hands were a constant reminder of what she could endure within her job and the scar on her stomach displayed how far she would go to keep the ones she loved safe.

Sliding across and unlocking her phone, Jane quickly checked whether there were any messages from her family before proceeding to set her alarm for the morning. She wasn't scheduled to be at work the following day, but knew that with the way she was feeling, that she should try and go for a run.

Placing the phone down on the bedside table, Jane attempted to burrow deep under the covers before she would let her mind wander any further.

She wasn't sure how long she had been under the covers when a knock sounded from the door. Much like the tortoise out in the kitchen, Jane stuck her head out briefly before putting her head back under the covers as she didn't really want to talk with Maura.

"Jane" she heard Maura's voice come through the door before hearing the door open. "Come to bed."

"I'm in bed." Jane told her wife without taking her head out from under the covers again. She knew it wouldn't be considered very mature of her, but in this moment she didn't care.

"Jane" She heard her wife sigh and suddenly the bed shifted. Not sure what her wife was about to do, Jane stayed where she was.

"I didn't mean to shut you out." she finally heard Maura say and Jane knew that she really should put her head out and make a point of listening to her wife. She decided to give herself a few more minutes just to hear what Maura had to say before she would stick her neck out and look at her wife.

"I havent handled this Dad thing very well." Maura confided. "I know i should tell you about tonight and i will." she promised.

Jane then felt her wife shift as if to lay down on the bed.

"I just, i need some time to process the information. I know I usually talk to you about things, but things aren't the same between us and I don't know what to do."

Jane found herself letting out her own sigh. She wasn't sure what she could say in response to her wife but knew that she needed to do something. Slowly she removed the quilt from over her head and looked at her wife.

Maura had her back to her and seemed to be looking down at something in her hands and the detective in her knew that she should take a moment to look before alerting her wife that she was now paying attention. Her eyes settled on a young woman who had strawberry blonde hair and a small spatter of freckles on her face. Before she could stop herself she asked "Who is she?" which caused her wife to jump.

Maura quickly put the photo back into her robe pocket without looking up at her wife. Jane wondered whether this person was what Maura was holding back from her, although she wasn't sure what angle she was coming from.

"Maura," Jane started before pausing a moment. She considered giving her wife the time that she said she needed to process, but that was until she thought back to the photo of the young woman with the strawberry blonde hair. While she knew that the photo looked a little older and had been worn around the edges, it didn't excuse her wife from hiding whoever she was from her for much longer.

"Who is she?" Jane finally asked again, watching as her wife seemed to flounder.

"I dont know" Maura answered and Jane watched as the red rash appeared on her wife's chest.

"You're lying" Jane told her wife as she pointed to her chest. With a huff she pulled the blankets back up over her head. She had to wonder whether her wife really thought they could survive these lies and exclusions.

"I…" Maura started and then stopped and Jane felt the bed shift again. "Jane" Maura said as she went.

Jane was not sure of the new position her wife was in, but at the current moment she wasn't sure that she cared.

"Paddy gave me the photograph." She finally told her wife and Jane laid still listening and waited for Maura to continue.

"She's, its…." She started and Jane could hear the waiver in her wife's voice.

"She's my mother." Maura eventually told her.

The words were enough to bring Jane's head back out from under the covers so that she could check for the hives.

"He told me that she was a student at Harvard. She studied medicine there and that she is a surgeon." Maura added.

Jane let out a sigh as she held her hand out to ask for the photo. Slowly her wife withdrew it from her pocket and handed it to her.

"He said her name was Ellis Montgomery. She's from a very affluent family and that she still practices medicine."

Jane studied the photo in her hands. She couldn't see many similarities between her wife and the woman in the photo. She almost had to wonder whether her father in law was lying to her wife. Then again, as reluctant as she was to admit it, there was no denying that Maura was Paddys daughter.

"He wanted me to know, had promised that if he had lived he would let me know."

Jane in that moment felt like a bitch. Her wife had just been given a photo of her biological mother and had been taking time to process and study the photo and she had been so insecure that she had not given her that time.

On handing the photo back to Maura, Jane shifted to drape the blankets over her wife's body and pull her close to her. She wasn't sure if her apologies would be appreciated in that moment.

"Did he tell you anything else?" She asked.

Maura shook her head and failed to look up at her wife. "I have a name and a face, but that is as far as it goes."

"Have you heard of Ellis Montgomery?" Jane asked, knowing that Maura read about all fields of medicine.

"No" she said softly, and there in her voice, Jane could detect what it was that had been holding her back from telling her about the revelation.

"Oh Maur" Jane sighed and pulled her that little bit closer. She felt her wife tense against her before finally relaxing and she pressed a kiss to her forehead.

"We will find her." Jane promised as she tried to comfort her wife. "I'll do everything i can to help."


	9. Chapter 9

**Sorry about the wait - holidays have started :) - just a short one, bridging towards something bigger**

Meredith woke to Callie snuggled into her chest, a rarity considering she didn't have much of one, but a comfort in knowing that her wife tended to appreciate the slight cushioning when sleeping.

On top of their snuggling position, Callie's slight bump, rested against her side and her voluptuous thighs draped across her body, trapping her in the bed. Meredith didn't want to move as she wanted to enjoy their closeness. It had been a while between these moments, the pregnancy not assisting with this at all.

Allowing her fingers to slowly trail down her fiancees back, Meredith let her eyes drift shut as she thought back over the previous night.

She had to admit that the evening had ended up going far better than she had anticipated. Her mother had been polite, her father was as pleasant as ever and it seemed that Callie was okay with her father handling the wedding plans as long as he respected the need for something small.

Meredith wasn't sure whether Callie would want to wear a flowing white gown for their nuptials, or whether she would prefer to wear something a little more masculine. Her fiancee, much like herself, was more of a pants person. Although, with the expanding of her womb, Meredith wondered whether this would change much.

Letting her mind wander from those thoughts, to her hand that had now come to rest on the small bump that had been forming, Meredith gently stroked her thumb over the skin, eliciting a sweet sigh from Callie. On noticing this, Meredith stopped her thumb from moving and just let her hand rest completely still, connecting herself with her partner and baby. She didn't want to wake Callie, earlier than necessary and on glancing over her fiancees shoulder and looking at the alarm clock on the bedside table, she could see that they had at least another half an hour.

Meredith knew that she could stay in bed and just enjoy being able to be close with Callie and watch her sleep, or she could get up begin to get ready and hunt out some form of breakfast for them both. She wanted to assist Callie in getting ready for work and if that meant getting the food sorted and being ready first, then that would make things a touch easier, after all, they wouldn't always be going to work together and today they would be starting to navigate the hospital and take on their own cases.

Shifting to place a soft kiss on Callie's forehead, Meredith then detached herself from her fiancee and quietly made her way out of bed.

…. Heavy Heart… Heavy Heart…

Maura was distracted, she knew better than anyone else that in her position, she needed to be focused. She had a body on the slab and her wife was upstairs beginning to gather any information they could find on the victim. He was currently a John Doe and was a body that was fished out of the water down at the wharf.

It had been a while since they had received a call from down there and though she was hesitant to go, especially now that everyone knew her connection to Paddy, she accompanied her wife, not wanting to call Pike in instead.

If she was going to be honest, she would admit that calling in Pike would have most likely been the right call to make. However, she was determined to soldier through and do the best job that she could.

Maura knew that it would help if she could shrug off the niggling issue of the photo that was on her office desk, or the fact that she had opened google on her laptop as she had been preparing to search for Ellis Montgomery when the call had come in.

She still wasn't a hundred percent sure what she would do once she had the information that connected to her supposed biological mother. A part of her felt like she would be betraying her adopted mother Constance who had attempted to raise her. Especially with the fact that they had been developing their relationship further with the encouragement of Jane.

Maura was unsure what her mother would say if she presented her with the information that she had received, although she figured it wouldn't be much, as what she had wasn't much.

Letting out a sigh and attempting to shake her head from the turmoil swirling around it, Maura attempted to focus on the task at hand, the autopsy of John Doe.


	10. Chapter 10

**I hope you enjoy - again, i don't own any of the characters.**

Jane knew that she should feel guilty. It was as simple as knowing that deception could break her already fragile marriage. However, she didn't actually plan on deceiving her wife when she first took the photo that was supposed to be her biological mother. Instead, she planned on gathering all the information her wife needed to connect with the woman who she should have bonded with all those years ago.

Approaching Frost, Jane handed over the photograph and waited patiently as he scanned the image into the computer data base. "Jane" Frost sounded as he waited for further directive. She hadn't told him much about the situation. All she had told him was the fact that someone had slipped the image to Maura with the claims that she was related for him to jump on board without asking anymore questions.

Korsak, Frost and Cavanaugh loved having Maura attached to their unit. She knew she was taking advantage of that, with the fact that they, like her, would do anything to protect her.

"Jane" Frost had said once more before Jane lifted her eyes to look at him. It was moments before the face in the photo appeared on the screen. "Do we have a name to search?" He asked

Jane nodded as her eyes shifted to study the woman in the photo. She was unsure whether she wanted to disclose the name.

"We do" she finally answered. "But I would prefer to see what hits we get first. That way we can see if they match up."

Frost nodded before typing in the command for the computer and pressing enter. She watched as the computer began to identify key facial features before scanning through its database. 

... Heavy heart ... Heavy heart... Heavy heart... 

Callie was more than thankful for the extra time sleeping. So much so that as she watched Meredith stand at the stove attempting to cook French toast she felt the love for her fiancée grow.

She had felt Meredith leave their bed earlier and despite wanting to have stayed snuggled up to her, she was grateful that she had been allowed to get that extra bit of rest before the alarm clock had sounded. She had even been surprised to see that Meredith had added an extra fifteen minutes to give her that little bit more time.

There Meredith stood facing the stove, her long milky white legs uncovered until the base of her ratty Dartmouth shirt which settled at the base of her panty covered buttocks.

Music played softly from the radio and Callie watched as Merediths hips swayed gently.

Not being able to resist any longer, Callie moved forward, silently until she reached Meredith. Her hands then slipped around her waist, guiding her back so she was flush up against her. It was then that Callie let her head lower so she could place sweet loving kisses on the crook of Merediths neck.

"Morning" Meredith sounded and Callie felt her push her bottom further into her.

"Hmmmm" Callie sounded as she let a hand drift up from Merediths waist, over the small but plump breasts to her chin where she guided her to turn her head. Callie lifted her own head so that her mouth could meet Merediths.

The kiss which was meant to be short and simple turned into so much more as Meredith dropped the skillet and turned in her, her own arms wrapping around her.

"You're about to burn breakfast." Callie whispered as she dropped her head to kiss her once more.

"I had just finished actually" Meredith responded as she snuggled into Callie. Callie was quite happy to receive the affection and placed a kiss on Merediths forehead before looking over her shoulder to see that the stove was turned off and two plates of French toast were served up ready for breakfast.

"You are amazing" Callie told her as she let her hand drift down to Merediths butt and give it a squeeze.

"No," Meredith responded as she pulled back, letting her own hand shift as it moved around Callie's body and came to rest on the small pouch.

"You are" Meredith told her and Callie smiled as she watched Meredith shift in for another kiss.

Callie couldn't remember the last time they had been so grossly affectionate towards each other. They didn't often get to spend mornings like this. She also knew that their schedules didn't really allow it. Callie hoped that today might be the first of many in their new home.

"We have half an hour between eating breakfast and needing to get ready." Callie told her as she unwound their bodies and reached for the two plates of food.

"Morning shower?" Meredith asked and Callie had to admit that she liked the way that her fiancée was thinking.

"Definitely" she told her as she gave her one more kiss before moving towards the kitchen bench where the cutlery had already been set out for their breakfast.

Taking their seats, both Callie and Meredith settled in to enjoy their breakfast. 

... Heavy heart... Heavy heart... Heavy heart... 

"We've got a match." Frost told Jane as Maura moved into the room. Neither partner had noticed the clacking of her heels on the hard wooden floors.

Maura lifted her eyes to the screen in front of her. She had figured they were looking for data in relation to their case. That was until her eyes met the photo that she had put in her handbag this morning.

Before she could get much further she heard Jane begin to rattle off the data that accompanied a picture of an older woman.

"Ellis Grey, was Ellis Montgomery from the Montgomery conglomerate. She's the chief of surgery at Seattle grace hospital." Jane read before going quiet a moment.

"She's married the Thatcher Grey, the owner of the Grey hotel chain. Together they have a daughter, Meredith Grey, also a surgeon." Frost rattled off.

Maura stood frozen. This was the woman who birthed her and here was her wife searching for her data without her permission.

Part of her wanted to walk out, come back and give her wife a chance to lose the data so that they didn't have to have this argument of breaking boundaries. The other part of her wanted to explode upon her wife and her partner for invading her privacy. She hadn't even managed to hit enter on the search engine on her computer downstairs as she wasn't sure of whether she wanted to know about her mother and here was her wife taking away that choice.

Their voices continued to bounce around her and not one ounce broke through her turmoil. She was decidedly livid.

"Jane" she sounded, knowing that she needed to attempt to stay calm and not explode right here in the middle of the offices.

Maura watched as her wife seemingly froze and hesitantly turned to face her.

"Do you think we could have a word." She said, struggling to maintain the calmness in her voice.

"I" Jane sounded and turned back for a moment to the screen in front of her.

"Now" Maura's voice demanded and it was enough to make Frost close off the screen and retreat from the room. As nobody else was in there, she moved quickly to shut the doors, attempting to distract herself from tearing strips off of her wife.

"Maur" Jane sounded and Maura knew that she looked like a prowling lion.

"You had no right." Maura opened and felt her anger bursting at the seams.

"Maura" Jane said a little firmer and Maura turned to her wife. She wasn't sure if she wanted to hear what the woman had to say.

"I vowed to protect you," Jane stated and Maura could see the nervousness within her wife and the lack of confidence in the statement.

"You had no right gathering data on someone that I hadn't decided what to do with." Maura said again. She had every intention of standing her ground. She did not want Jane to think what she had done was okay.

"I am protecting you." Jane said again. This time her voice sounded as though it was gaining confidence as both bodied turned in what was an obvious standoff.

Maura waited a moment trying to figure out whether her wife was going to further explain, despite not really wanting to hear an explanation.

"I needed to know that this woman was not going to hurt you, that she even existed!" Jane argued. "I can't bear to see you hurt."

"But it's okay for you to hurt me?" Maura asked heatedly and could tell that her words instantly wounded her wife.

"You took the photo without my permission. You've betrayed me." Maura said as she began to turn away from her wife.

"I was loving you the only way I know how." Jane said softly before dropping her head.

Maura froze for a moment before making her way to the door.

"I was collecting the information to then give you a choice when you were ready." Jane added.

"You were being selfish." Maura said, knowing her words would cut. She then stormed out of the room, hearing the door slam behind her. Her anger still oozing as she shot a glare at Barold before leaving the department and making her way back downstairs.


	11. Chapter 11

**Sorry this took so long and is short. Im hoping to get some updates banked over this weekend. I haven't had a chance to write due to work commitments.**

Devastated, that was the only way to describe the way Jane was feeling. Yes she had deceived her wife, yes she had known the possible ramifications for her actions. However, she had held onto the hope that her wife would see once she had given her the folder, that her intentions had only been the best and that all she wanted was to keep her wife safe.

Of course, before she had been able to compile her folder Maura had arrived.

It had taken everything inside of Jane not to crumble in the BRIC office attached to the homicide unit. She held on enough to make it to Cavanaugh's office to request a personal day.

Her father in law had obviously heard the blow up or had at least seen her wife's departure as he was quick to reassure her that she could take what time she needed.

She still couldn't recall how she had made it from his office down to her car, or what made her think that heading back to the home that she shared with her wife was the best place to be. All she knew was that she couldn't front up at work after everything that had just happened and complete her job with the dedication and energy that it required.

How do you face your colleagues after most knew that you had been reamed out by your wife? When all you could think was that you were possibly done.

On shaky legs, Jane stepped out of the car and made her way to the house. Her hands trembling as they took her keys from her pocket and opened the door.

The entry way to the house loomed over her as she made her way inside and for the first time in a long time, she felt as though she had been trespassing.

Jane was not sure whether she really could consider this house her home. She wasn't sure whether it had truly been. There was only so much a married couple could go through. So far, they had survived Charles Hoyt, counselling, the shooting at Division one and Paddy Doyle.

Jane wasn't one hundred percent sure that they had really survived Paddy Doyle at all. It seemed that he had been the one thing that could rip them apart.

Moving through the house, Jane operated on auto pilot as she found herself in her marital bedroom. She looked over the bed where they had spent many nights making love and cherishing each other. It had been a while since the love they had shared had been connected with those sheets.

Did she stay? She wondered. Should she be here when her wife came home?

Jane was not sure whether she should be. Had Maura wanted to end things from the moment she had walked into BRIC and seen what was on the screen?

Not knowing what to do, Jane let herself fall to the floor. She wasn't sure what she had anymore and where herself began and if her relationship with Maura was officially at an end.

Heavy heart… Heavy heart… Heavy Heart….

Meredith couldn't have asked for a better start to her day. She knew that, as much as she knew the sky was blue, blood bled red and that surgery was always going to be her best friend.

She had finished off her breakfast with her fiancee before enjoying an intimate shower session. There had been no shower sex in the end, but there had still been love shared, close encounters and relaxation. Followed by the drive to work where a make out session occurred when she had dropped Calliope off at her office before proceeding to her own.

It was there that Meredith had begun to process everything that had happened the day before. From the awkward encounter with her mother when they signed their contracts and picked up their schedules, to the moment when she had walked through Callie's office door to find her asleep on the couch. Furthermore to the re-proposal from Callie where she had decided that she wanted to be married soon instead of waiting any longer.

Meredith couldn't help but smile and reach for the photo frame that sat on her office desk. She knew that she didn't really have a great deal of time to daydream about their upcoming wedding, or focus on the fact that Callie was going to look amazing in a white dress as she waited down at the alter for her.

Rubbing a thumb, gently over the frame, Meredith quickly placed the frame back down only to pick up the sonogram of their little bundle. It was still fresh, and developing beautifully if you were to ask her. She knew that they had a long road ahead of them, and there was not one part of her that wished for the process to hurry along.

There was a time that Meredith had thought she would never be a mother. That thought had changed once she had watched Calliope with her niece and nephew, after that, it had been all she had dreamed about.

Placing the sonogram back in its place, Meredith quickly looked at the time. She knew that if she wanted to catch Addison straight out of surgery, she would need to move off soon to catch her. It was then that she would be expected to take up post in the E.R to assist with any cases coming in. She could only hope that she would be lucky enough to snare a head injury which would lead to surgery.

Smiling promptly at the thought of seeing her cousin and the possible surgery. Meredith moved to stand, knowing that what she was going to ask her cousin could possibly make her day.

…Heavy Heart… Heavy Heart…. Heavy Heart….

Maura was still fuming as she progressed through the paper work that came along with the last body she had autopsied. She didn't care if Jane was supposedly trying to protect her. Her wife had no right to invade her privacy, to take the photo of her mother from her bag and furthermore, run a background check. It was so selfish of her to assume that it was not going to hinder their relationship.

She had only just started to trust her wife again. Maura knew that Jane knew that. She had no idea why that woman was so hell bent on tearing them apart. If Jane still loved her and wanted things to work out, she would never have done what she had. She would have known that she needed time, that she wanted to test the waters and see if knowing her mother was what she wanted.

Maura had wanted this information for so long, Jane had to of known that. And to just tap away and get all the details without her permission. To strip away her choice… Who did Jane think she is?

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Maura closed the folder of the paper work. She had not actually filled in a great deal other than the patients name. It appeared that with her wife's invasion and bull headed nest, she had become too unfocused to work.

There was no going home though, Maura thought, as tempting as it was. She was unsure whether going home to her house would solve anything at all. Did she really want to go back to her home, which was supposed to be a home that held so much love and possibilities for the future, when she wasn't so sure that her and Jane still had a future.

She didn't want to dwell too much on that right now, especially as her heart clenched at the thought of life without Jane. It wasn't something that she wanted, but she couldn't exactly understand why her wife seemed to be so hell bent on tearing down everything they had built together.

Maura looked over at the photo frame of Jane and herself on what had been her first ever game of baseball. She could still remember how Jane had told her that she would be experiencing something knew on their date and had promptly given her an old Boston red sox jersey and a cap and told her that she needed to be in those items when she returned to pick her up at 5.

It had been a struggle to work out what combination suited the situation as she had been unfamiliar at the time, but once she was dressed and at the game with Jane, she had found the science and rules for the game interesting enough to sit and watch. Jane had been the one to ask their neighbour at the game to take a photo. She had had it processed and given it to her framed, telling her that she wanted her to see the exact moment that she had realised that she was in love with her. Maura had simply melted.

A lot had happened since then. Some good, some bad. She had to admit that they were lucky though to make it this far. Between her wife's visits to the hospital, her encounters with Charles Hoyt and the shooting of her father, Maura hadn't been too sure that she had wanted to stay married to a blue collared police officer. Her adopted mother had even told her that the wife she had chosen may always been a challenge. At the time, she hadn't read a great deal into the comment, but she could see now that she may have been right.

It was on that thought that an intrusive knock had sounded. Maura quickly put down the photo frame and looked up at the person responsible. She was mildly shocked to see her wife's partner standing at the door with a manilla folder in hand, his pointed facial features displaying mild anger and disgust. Before she had even had a chance to talk to him, or better yet, turn him away. He proceeded into the room, dumping the folder onto her desk.

"Barold" Maura said, not sure what to say to the man. She looked up, only to look away from the intense eyes that were looking down on her.

"Your wife has gone him." he told her. "I suggest that you get in your fancy blue prius and drive home to fix things otherwise, or she might not be there when you get home tonight."

Maura looked away. She didn't think he had any right to speak to her about Jane, however, the look he had given her was enough for her to at least feel slightly ashamed about her out burst.

"She was doing the only thing she could to make sure you were going to be safe. That the person your mobster father told you was your mother, wasn't going to be someone to push you away or better yet, take advantage of you."

"She had no right" Maura broke in.

"She had every right." Barold barked back. "I stood by her when she took her vows. She wrote her own. If you can't remember what she promised, then maybe you shouldn't still be together."

With that, he had moved out of the room, slamming her door behind him.

Maura sat frozen in her spot. She had no idea what to think or to feel. So instead she looked down at the folder in front of her to simply read 'Ellis Grey, nee Montgomery.'


	12. Chapter 12

**Sorry this chapter was late, its actually part of a whole. I had misplaced my writing book. So now you get a double header. I hope you enjoy.**

There was something in Addison that made Meredith feel confident enough to ask her to be her matron of honor. She was the only person she could ever want to stand beside her. There was Christina, her best friend from college, but their friendship hadn't ever seemed as strong as the one that she had with her cousin.

Meredith was excited about the fact that she was going to ask her cousin to stand beside her now. She had already text her to let her know that they needed to meet up for coffee and after making the necessary arrangements, Meredith had proceeded down to the Emergency Room as that is where she had been assigned to work, by Derek.

The emergency room definitely wasn't its usual chaotic self. It was however, steady and organized. The young woman she had nicknamed 'screech' from what she had heard from Addison, seemed to run a tight ship. Everything was organized and structured.

Moving towards the main counter, Meredith looked around at the emergency room and noticed the small changes that had occurred over time. The room appeared to flow, maintaining the access for all to the supplies as well as making it easy to move around the room between the patients.

Meredith was quick to introduce herself to 'screech' who turned out to be a Dr Kepner, who promptly told her that she hadn't paged Neuro. Meredith had tilted her head and studied her. "I was assigned to the pit." She advised the other doctor. "I can do more than Neuro. Let me be useful."

When the other doctor rolled her eyes before moving her eyes down to her jacket to read her name, showing that she obviously hadn't listened to her introduction. Meredith watched as the woman opened her eyes a little wider. It seemed to always be in the name. "Dr Grey", the woman had started to respond but stopped but then stopped and appeared to look past her.

Meredith sighed and was about to turn when she felt a hand rest on her shoulder. That simple touch told her that the company who had joined her was obviously someone who intimidated the woman across from her and figuring that it wasn't her mother and that the touch seemed feminine, Meredith pegged it as Addison.

"Is there a problem here Kepner?" Addison's voice broke through and Meredith watched as the woman across from her quickly shook her head. "Good," Addison promptly replied as she then squeezed Meredith's shoulder.

Meredith then turned her head to look at her cousin. "Coffee already?" she asked her. Addison simply grinned.

"Actually, I was paged down here for a consult on a pregnant woman. She apparently tripped, husband says she hit her head." Meredith pointedly turned to look at Dr Kepner. "Looks like I am needed." She told the other Doctor before turning to follow her cousin to the patient.

… Heavy Heart… Heavy Heart… Heavy Heart…

Maura sat staring at the manila folder that Barold had dropped off. On seeing the name, she knew that she didn't need to Google the name. Dr Ellis Grey had been a name she had heard multiple times at Med School. She was the woman who had cut a path for women in medicine. Before Ellis Grey, surgery was considered a boys club. She had introduced the world to strong female doctors and had shown other women that they could achieve in the complex fields and that they didn't need to settle into one of the predictable fields like general medicine.

The words Barold had spoken through were more confronting than the folder in front of her. He had mentioned the vows Jane had taken when they had wed. It had seemed so long ago. They had written their own vows as she had a problem with the wording of the traditional vows that would be carried out in a church.

Jane was not poetic, but she had made her cry that day. Some people would say that it was an easy thing to do, however, when it came to her love for Jane and feeling that love, Jane had rarely made her cry. Since their marriage, it had changed some, although she knew that it had never been Jane's intent.

"I solemnly swear that I will love, serve and protect you, until I am legally discharged. I will prevent to the best of my power all offenses against you to the best of my skill and knowledge, faithfully as your wife, best friend and lover."

The vows of her wife twisted in her head as she pictured Jane standing in front of her in her official dress blues. She had pledged something similar to the Boston Police Department. Her wife held her in the same honor and pledge as she did her job, something that she lived and breathed. Jane had told her in the only way she knew how that she needed her to survive and would do everything she could to keep her safe from harm.

Maura looked at the photo again of them both at the red sox game. It was hard to believe that they had gone through so much since then. She was sure that Jane had maintained the same sentiment and still trusted in her promise.

"She's gone home." Barold's words rattled through her brain as she thought of Jane. A sinking feeling filled her brain as she remembered that he warned her that she might not be there when she got home.

"No" Maura sounded as her eyes trained on the Jane in the frame. The olive skin, dark hair and deep eyes that she loved with all her heart, stared up at her.

"I promise to hold you, love you and cherish you. To accept you as you are as time continues. To take you hand in mine…" Maura thought as she remembered the start of her own vows. Her mind replaying the promise to Jane to accept her as she is, as it mixed with Jane's promise to protect.

Tentatively, Maura stood, sliding the folder Barold delivered into her bag. She then moved towards her door, knowing that she needed to notify Susie that she would be leaving.

Maura needed to get home now. She ached knowing and could only pray that her wife would be there when she got home.


	13. Chapter 13

**Had this rocking and ready to go, but wouldn't let me log in.**

 **So finally, here it is!**

Callie had so far been relieved that her workload was light. It would mean that she could learn the layout and functions of the new hospital.

Callie had spent her morning reviewing pending cases that had been handed over to her. Her first surgery was scheduled for tomorrow and Callie could only be grateful for the reprieve.

Looking at the clock on the wall, Callie calculated carefully how long she had until it was appropriate for her to take a break and grab some lunch. She knew that sometime today she would need to call her parents and let them know that she and Meredith would be getting married within the month.

Callie knew her mother would be disappointed that they had waited to move before deciding to have the ceremony as they had discussed some of the plans. She had no idea how she was going to placate her.

Closing her current patients file, Callie looked at her phone to see if Meredith had text her. She knows that Meredith is spending the morning in the pit, but she hoped that they could grab some lunch together and discuss some of their wedding plans.

Meredith had already told her that she was going to ask Addison to stand beside her, yet Callie wasn't completely sure who she wanted to be her person. Her best friend from boarding school had passed away in a tragic car accident and her friend from medical school and residency was currently in Malawi after receiving a grant. Callie doubted that Arizona would be able to get leave at such short notice, although one could hope.

"Maybe I should ask…" Callie thought to herself and promptly pulled up the world clock on her phone to check the time over there. On realizing that it was currently 8pm in Malawi, Callie figured that she might possibly get a hold of her.

Flicking through her phone for the Face time App, Callie quickly found Arizona's name and hit the call button.

Callie watched as the screen showed the call signal and smiled once it told her that the call was connecting.

"Calliope!" Arizona's voice broke through as her smiling face graced the screen. Callie could only smile back in response. Other than her parents and Meredith, Arizona was the only other person to call her by her full name. "I've just gotten out of the shower." The blonde told her as she put the phone down, exposing her towel clad body before moving out of the shot.

"I ah, can call you back." Callie offered, not wanting to hold up her friend in case she had plans.

"Are you kidding, I'm just putting on my pajamas. Am having a night at home." She informed her as a pair of legs in black boxer shorts came back into view, followed by a shirt and then back up to Arizona's smiling face.

"Good" Callie responded as she smiled innocently at her friend.

"I take it the pregnancy is still going well." Arizona pointedly spoke and when Callie looked at her confused she watched as Arizona smirked. "You're glowing Calliope."

Callie could only beam at her friend before reaching for her copy of the sonogram on her desk and moving it in front of the camera. "3 months tomorrow." Callie tells Arizona.

"Am I still in the running for god mother?" Arizona asked which caused Callie to raise an eyebrow. She hadn't thought that far ahead and neither had Meredith.

"Actually," Callie led, thinking that now would be a good opening. "I was calling to ask you to do the next best thing."

"Which is?" Arizona prompted and Callie watched as the blonde sat down against the pillows on her bed.

"Is there any chance that you could come home in 3 weeks?"

Arizona tilted her head and Callie could see the obvious confusing on her friends face.

"Mer and I are getting married. It's only going to be small, but I was wondering if you would be my maid of honor?" Callie stumbled out.

Arizona beamed in response. "I'd love to!"

There was a pause as neither friend knew what else to say.

"Okay," Callie finally spoke when her phone chimed to signal a message.

"Let me talk to the board. Hopefully they will give me a full week." Arizona said as she reached for a pen and paper as Callie then proceeded to tell her the dates. 

…. Heavy Heart…. Heavy Heart…. Heavy Heart…. 

To leave or not to leave? It truly seemed to be the question that was bouncing around Jane's head.

Her bag was already packed and sat at the foot of her marital bed. It had taken a major internal battle to get her this far. Now, her indecisiveness had her not picking up her bag and walking out of the house.

Jane wanted to run. It had been one of her first instincts. She had friends she could go visit, even had family she could go stay with. However, running didn't completely feel right. Jane just wasn't sure that leaving would be the best move for her marriage.

Jane thought back to a conversation she had with Vince when everything had turned sour, of course it was right after she had shot her father in law. He had told her that a break could be as good as a holiday and had suggested that it might be just what they needed.

Jane wasn't one hundred percent certain that she should be taking advice from her long time partner, considering his multiple failed marriages.

Jane sighed as she looked around the bedroom. They had encountered a lot since they had been married. For some couples she was sure that it would have been enough to break them.

Looking down at her bag, Jane knew that she had already made the commitment to leave. She also knew that while her head was telling her to go, her heart was screaming at her to stay.

"Jane!" A voice broke through her thoughts and her head snapped up. She heard her name called once more from down the stairs and Jane had to figure that Sean had called her mother who had decided to come check on her, letting her self in.

Jane was unsure what there was for her to say to her mother, especially when she wasn't sure what she wanted to do with her current predicament, but not wanting for her mother to scream the house down, Jane took one last look at her bag before letting her knew that she was coming.

She spotted her mother from the moment she reached the top of the stairs. Her Ma stood at the bottom, hair pulled back in a ponytail and a worried expression on her face.

Letting pout a sigh, Jane began her descent towards her mother who waited patiently at the bottom for her. Jane was surprised by how willing she was to fall into her mother's arms.

Jane let her mother hold her long enough to seemingly gather strength from the woman. She had then reluctantly pulled back and moved towards the kitchen to get them both a drink. Jane knew it was the least she could do considering her mother had obviously left work to come check on her.

As she began putting around the kitchen, Jane tried to think of something to say to her mother. She had no idea what the woman already knew.

"So," Jane had started, but then stopped when she saw that her mother was going to speak. However, she seemingly closed her moth and Jane wasn't sure whether she should soldier on or not. On seeing that her mother had decided to stay quiet, Jane decided to push on. "How much ahs Sean told you?"

On seeing how her mother tilted her head, Jane began to realize that her stepfather may not be the informant.

"Ma?" Jane said as she shifted nervously.

"Actually," her mother said as she looked away guiltily. "Maura called," she confessed.

Jane took a step back from her mother. She wasn't sure how she felt. What was her mothers point in being here? Had she come to make sure that she was gone when Maura got home? Had she come to lecture her about digging into the information on Maura's biological mother?

Jane didn't know what to say to her mother. So she stood there staring at her. It took everything she had not to turn away from the woman who had birthed and raised her.

A silence came over them and Jane did not know what to do or who would break it.

Finally, as her mother made a step towards her, she figured that she would stop her mother from doing what she had obviously been sent to do. "Well, I guess…" Jane started as she stepped away again and this time she began to move towards the stairs. "I'll just grab my bag.'

Jane ignored her mother as she called after her. She figured she had heard it all. Looking down at her wedding band, her heart completely broke. Everything she thought she had was slipping away from her.

Reaching for her bag, she reluctantly lifted it to her shoulder. Tears slowly started to fall and it took everything for her not to collapse in a heap on the floor. Although, the energy that she was using to stay standing and not to crumble into a heap was enough to hold her in her place. Jane couldn't move.

Eyes closed, as she let the tears flow freely, Jane was frozen. Suddenly two hands brushed over her shoulders and the accompanying arms wrapped around her. A soft boy pressed into her back and Jane's breath hitched.

"Stay" a voice, said behind her as lips pressed into her back.

Maura…

It was only then that Jane let her body fall and her wife's body seemed to follow her. Holding her and keeping her home.


	14. Chapter 14

**Unfortunately I don't own either show, I'm simply passionate about the characters. I worship the ground on which Shonda Rhimes and Tess Gerritsen walk upon.**

Meredith was relieved that their day was over. She couldn't be more grateful that her mother had organised an easy schedule for Callie and her own first couple of days.

They had come to the end of their second day at Seattle Grace and already so much had been decided on.

Addison had agreed to stand beside her and had even accompanied the excitement of being asked with a high pitched squeal.

Callie had informed her over lunch that she had called Arizona and that it looked like she too would be joining them for their nuptials.

The couple had arrived home, Callie looking tired and feeling achey had proceeded straight to the bathroom. Meredith had followed only to light some candles and to make sure that her fiancee could relax. Once done, she and proceeded to their bedroom to change and called out to place an order of pizza.

Meredith knew that their eating habits would need to be tidied up once they were settled, not only for their own health, but for their babies health as well.

Now with Callie in the bath tub, soaking away her day and Meredith took the time to curl up on the couch with the Bangles playing quietly in the background. She and time to reflect on the phone call she had received earlier from Katherine Stevens, her fathers event manager. Katherine had been her usual polite, yet pushy self. It had been made obvious by the woman's enthusiasm that she was looking forward to organising a wedding over her usual openings or fundraisers.

Meredith figured that the short time frame leading up to the wedding may be a stress factor for the woman, but it hadn't stopped her from declining any plans to meet the next day to discuss the wedding arrangements.

Callie's parents had still not been informed about their new found wedding plans and wanting to talk with them tonight lead to her placating Katherine with the affirmation that she would call her tomorrow. It was obviously not what Katherine wanted to hear.

Feeling relaxed, which was a rarity for anyone planning a wedding in a month, but knowing that it was going to be small and extremely private, meant that there would be less of the bells and whistles that came with a normal wedding.

The doorbell ringing was enough to draw Meredith our of her thoughts. Settling down her glass of wine that she had unknowingly been toying with, grabbing her purse from the coffee table, Meredith headed towards the door ready to pay for her pizza. She could only hope that Callie would be out of the bath before the pizza got cold.

... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...

Angela was unsure whether she should say or go. She was unsure whether she had done her job and stalled her daughter from leaving her wife.

Jane had gone upstairs in a huff and Angela had to hope that Maura wouldn't be too far away. It seemed though that as soon as she thought it, her daughter in law had come rushing into the house.

That of course had been an hour ago. Since then, Angela had plodded around the kitchen tidying up. There wasn't a great deal for there to do and she knew that she was really just making work for herself.

Angela couldn't tear her mind from the fact that her daughter, her baby girl, was upstairs with her wife. A wife who had, just hours earlier, pushed her towards breaking point. She had never seen her daughter so upset.

Moving from her spot behind the kitchen bench towards the bottom of the stairs. Angela was tempted to go upstairs and check on the two women. The only thing that stopped her from doing so was the restrictions that Jane had imposed when the couple had first been married.

Hand coming to rest on the bottom of the bannister. Angela took the first step and halted there. She hadn't heard anything from the couple since Maura had gone up. Angela had been surprised that there hadn't been any explosive words exchanged and that instead the house had been engulfed in silence.

Lifting her foot to take another step towards the next level of the house, Angela wavered again.

Suddenly there was a presence at the top of the stairs and Angela looked up feeling like a deer caught in the head lights. There, looking down at her was Maura.

The woman looked like a far cry from her usual self. Her face was tear stained, her dress pants and blouse completely rumpled. Her makeup seemed to be smeared and Angela tried her best to ignore the 'panda' eyes that had formed.

"Maura" Angela finally spoke, uncertain of what to say to the woman.

"Janes sleeping" Maura informed her and Angela took a step back down the stairs, waiting to see what Maura was going to do.

"Do you need me to do anything?" Angela asked, wanting to assist her girls in any way possible.

"I..." Maura started, but then stopped as she seemingly decided to descend the stairs.

Angela moved out of the young womans' way and let her through.

She watched as Maura reached the bottom step. Angela hesitated when they were both equal, she wanted to embrace the woman who was very much her daughter, but knowing that her actual daughter was a mess up stairs stopped her.

Maura seemed to have read Angela's thoughts and it made the older woman shift uneasily.

"You can go check on her." Maura said softly.

Angela didn't need to be told twice and in fact moved quickly back to the base of the stairs, leaving behind her daughter in law who too was in a world of hurt.


	15. Chapter 15

**Unfortunately I don't own either show, I'm simply passionate about the characters. I worship the ground on which Shonda Rhimes and Tess Gerritsen walk upon.**

Callie considered herself to be a very lucky woman. She didn't always feel like this, however, stepping out of the bath tub to be met with pizza and a fresh glass of mango juice definitely assisted in developing the mindset.

Meredith had gathered the pizza's from the delivery guy, plated them both a few slices and had proceeded to pour them both a drink.

When Callie came down stairs, moments after the pizza had been delivered, she was met by her smiling fiancee who had placed a kiss on her lips before handing her a plate.

They had consumed their pizza in the lounge room, sat like book ends, Callie happy with the thought that this was how she was going to spend the rest of her life.

Sometime after Meredith had finished eating she had placed the plate down on the coffee table and instantly reached for one of the feet Callie had tucked beside her.

On feeling her foot being pulled away from her body and towards the other end of the couch, Callie turned her body, giving Meredith better access.

"You're spoiling me." Callie told Meredith as she put her plate down next to Meredith's, tilted her head back and enjoyed the special treatment she was receiving.

"I'm enjoying you." Meredith simply responded.

Callie couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at her fiancee's choice of words.

"What I mean…" Meredith began as a light blush spread over her cheeks, "…is that our schedules will pick up soon and between the wedding, the baby and work, we might not get to spend quiet evenings on the couch together."

Callie's face spread into a huge grin. It was rare for anyone to really see this side of Meredith, the sweet, loving person she was in a relationship. To respond to what Meredith had just confessed, Callie pulled her foot away and shifted to remove the space between them. Her mouth seeking out Meredith's. They kissed, gently as Callie cuddled in close to Meredith, her head coming to rest on her shoulder.

Meredith's hand soon took hers and Callie was certain that nothing could be better than cuddling with her fiancee right now.

"I could stay like this with you all night." Callie confessed.

"If thats the case, we better call your parents first." Meredith and responded and Callie felt her lips press against her temple, "Then we can snuggle to a movie."

"That sounds wonderful." Callie quickly replied turning her head to meet Meredith's lips once more.

A contented sigh fell from both of their lips and Callie felt her body warm to Meredith's touch.

"Mmmm…." Meredith sounded as she pulled away from Callie a moment. "First we call your folks." As she ducked back and quickly pecked Callie's lips. Callie knew that if Meredith hadn't pulled away, she wouldn't have had the strength too.

Callie couldn't help but let out a groan, knowing that this wouldn't go to plan.

…..Heavy Heart….Heavy Heart…. Heavy Heart…. Heavy Heart… Heavy Heart…..

Angela had left. It had been obvious to Maura that her mother in law had wanted to take Jane with her. However, the woman had learnt over the years that it wasn't her place to interfere, so Angela left alone.

Now, as Maura sat quietly at the dinner table, she was unsure of what they were supposed to do. She and made it home in time to stop Jane from leaving, had held her as both of them cried, but now she didn't know what came next.

Jane had migrated downstairs to the couch not long after her mother had left. Without saying a word, she and curled up into a ball, pulling a quilt around her before proceeding to put the Red Sox vs Yankees game on the screen.

Maura utilised this time to focus on Jane and the way she had hid under the cover of the quilt and Maura couldn't pin point when her wife had developed such a habit. Sure, Jane would grab something to cover her legs or wrap around herself on cool days, at times they even snuggled together. However, she had never completely burrowed under the covers like she did now, using them like a shield to keep her safe.

Maura could only assume that she had done this to her wife. That after everything they had been through things had obviously become too much.

Her wife had been a hard woman, devoted cop and tough homicide detective. She had also had a sensitive side. She had fallen in love with that woman. The woman in front of her had seemingly been reduced to a shadow of herself. A person who wanted to bury themselves and hide from her wife.

"Great job, Isles." Maura thought to herself and looked away from her wife and instead looked down at the cup of peppermint tea that she had been drinking. She had absolutely no idea how to fix their current situation. All Maura knew was that the last 6 months had not been easy. Her mob boss father had a hand in that.

Maura knew that she couldn't completely blame her father. But he did factor into what had gone wrong. She knew that neither Jane nor herself had handled the situation correctly. They seemed to have attempted to dump everything to the side until it had built up, toppled and caused a land slide.

Maura did not want her wife and their marriage to be the casualties of it all. She could not imagine a world without Jane in it.

Shaking her head to attempt to remove the possibility of a life without Jane, Maura pushed her cup away and proceeded to stand. She pottered over to the sink and rinsed her cup before moving towards Jane. On reaching the couch, Maura moved around the chair to stop in front of her wife. She had been grateful for the Ad break as she decided to push back the quilt covering her wife's head.

On exposing Jane's delicate face, tear stains still present, Maura leant forward and captured her lips. It took a few moments before Jane responded to the kiss, but the response was enough to cause her to let out a sigh. "I love you." She murmured to Jane before pulling back and covering her wife's head with the quilt again.

Maura then took a step back from her wife and moved down to the other end of the couch, picking up her iPad from the coffee table as she went. She knew that she needed to fix them. She just wasn't sure how.


	16. Chapter 16

**Unfortunately I don't own either show, I'm simply passionate about the characters. I worship the ground on which Shonda Rhimes and Tess Gerritsen walk upon.**

Jane was unsure what to think of being woken early and ushered into the prius that belonged to her wife. Maura had obviously organised something as there sat her travel bag on the back seat.

Work, Jane was sure she was supposed to have work. There was no holiday scheduled for either of them despite having multiple days banked. They were supposed to be getting ready for work. Instead Jane found herself in her red sox hoodie, sweat pants and slippers in the passenger seat of the car.

Maura had taken the time to dress in jeans and a sweater and Jane was unsure why she hadn't been given the same opportunity, especially when the car pulled onto the freeway leading out of Boston.

Jane looked nervously at her wife who had recently handed her her sunglasses and pondered whether she had completely lost her shit.

They hadn't spoken since Maura had kissed her during the previous night and she had been allowed to retreat to the safety of the spare room which hd become her bedroom over the course of the past 6 months although, she knew that Maura wouldn't allow the transition to that room to become official. Jane wasn't 100% sure whether it was what she wanted either.

Jane shifted her head so that she was looking out the window watching the remnants of Boston pass by, She wanted to ask where they were going but wasn't sure whether she wanted the answer.

Head resting against the glass, Jane let the silence engulf her and slowly let her eyes close behind her sunglasses.

A hand came down to rest upon her leg. It moved up and down before finally giving her thigh a squeeze. The sensation was very much like an electric shock being sent through her body. Jane stiffened, tempted to grab her wives hand and acknowledge her touch. The hand lifted under her movement and Jane opened her eyes to watch as Maura seemed to look as though she was burnt and moved it back to the steering wheel.

Letting out a sigh, Jane squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the predicament that she found herself in. She couldn't recall how they got to this point in their marriage and she had no idea how they would come back from it.

 **... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...**

Ellis Grey sat at her office desk. The cool mahogany wood was almost covered in paper work. She had been swamped from the moment she had entered the hospital, between patient charts, grant approvals and notes from Katherine about possible venues for Meredith's wedding.

She hadn't let her daughter know that her husbands employee would be feeding her information in regards to her wedding plans, but she really wanted to have some in put and monitor the progress. As it was, she regretted that she didn't have a close relationship with her daughter and knew very much that it was her own doing.

Things that had occurred in her past had left her not knowing how to bond with her daughter, which had included the fear of losing her. It was something she had confided in Thatcher about and from the moment it hadn't been discussed again. Instead, he had agreed to pick up the slack where Meredith was concerned and as a result, he had been more privy to the happening of Meredith's world than she had ever been.

Trying not to dwell on the notion, Ellis shifted the papers to locate the sonogram that her daughter and presented her with a couple of days earlier. Addison had given the title of Grey Torres in the top right corner and Ellis didn't let her eyes dwell on it too much as she let them shift over the developing feotus that was going to make her a grandmother.

The thought of the baby gave her cause to smile and it wasn't something that she felt she could explain. When she had found out that Meredith was engaged to Callie she thought that the chance to be a grandmother was all but removed. Of course, she knew that her daughter would be able to procreate without a man being permanently in her life due to IVF, but she had thought it unlikely as it hadn't been a desire that her daughter had expressed.

Thumbing the image carefully, Ellis moved it to the side, propping it up against the family photo that had been positioned there.

It was a very different family to the one she had almost had years earlier and yet one that she couldn't imagine living without now. Ellis could only hope that she could do better for her future grandchild than she had been for Meredith.

Letting out a small sigh, Ellis let her eyes flick to her mail pile and moved to pick ip the letter with the post mark of Boston. Her body remembered her time in that city just as much as her heart did.

Suddenly her pager sounded. Pulling back the hand that had been reaching for the envelope, Ellis checked her pager and on reading 911 for the pit. She quickly stood, pulling on her lab coat. She then proceeded to her office door. The chaos of paperwork on her desk would have to wait, as would the letter from Boston.


	17. Chapter 17

**Sorry about the delay - i have been immersed in developing teaching programs and therefore haven't had time to write.**

 **If i owned the show, all i would be doing is writing...**

Maura was reluctant to wake the sleeping Jane beside her, but knew how irritable her wife could get if she slept too long during the day, especially in a cramped position much like the one in the car.

They were half an hour out of Cape Cod and Maura could only hope that her decision to bring her wife here would turn out to be a positive one.

Maura had read up on the possible ways to mend relationships that were in severe turmoil and although she had been very tempted to enrol them in couples counselling, something she knew Jane would be extremely opposed to, she had read that a quiet holiday away together on equal ground with no everyday stress factors could be beneficial. She really hoped that she was right.

Maura hadn't wasted any time in calling the man she considered her father in law to request the time off for Jane. She knew that it had been short notice to request 3 weeks that she had accepted that it would be possible that he would say no, but knowing that he would have been updated on their most recent events and the fact that Jane didn't currently have any large cases, lead Cavanaugh to say a swift "Yes" to her request. He had groaned when she had mentioned that it needed to be put in to effect immediately.

Reaching across the centre console where Jane slept, she brushed a hand over her wife's leg before giving her thigh a squeeze. "Jane" she said softly, not wanting to startle her wife. One receiving no major reaction, Maura gave Jane's leg a firmer squeeze and said her name a little louder.

It had been enough for Jane's eyes to flutter open as she groan and shifted her body further away from her own.

Maura let out a sigh. She was determined not to start their holiday with a grizzling Jane who had a sore neck from hours of sleeping in the car.

"Jane Clementine Rizzoli-Isles" Maura said with a slightly sterner voice. "Wake up - we are almost at Cape Cod."

This time Maura watched as Jane's eyes opened completely as she proceeded to turn her head so she could face her.

"Where?" Jane asked and Maura knew that she had just been clear enough for her wife to hear.

Maura shifted her eyes back on to the road. A part of her wondered whether she should have told her wife where they were going from the beginning.

"Maura, I have work!" Jane panicked as she sat up and turned her body completely towards the drivers side.

Maura felt her hands tighten on the steering wheel. She wasn't sure how much fight her wide intended on putting up in regards to their holiday. "You have 3 weeks, starting today, with me at Cape Cod." she advised her wife.

Her words seemed to stun her wife into silence and Maura didn't know what to think. She could only hope that it meant that she was going to simply accept her decision. It had appeared so, right up to the moment Jane had uttered a simple, "Why?"

Maura kept her eyes on the road too scared to look at her wife.

"Because" Maura started and then stopped as she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. "I'm afraid that if we don't do this" she started again before pausing trying to with hold the emotions that were building up inside of her. "If we don't do this, I might just lose you."

The words hung in the car for a moment and Maura figured that her wife was trying to process them.

"Maur... I" Jane began, but stopped as she seemed to think about everything.

"We haven't had a holiday in a few years. Just let us have this..." Maura found herself saying.

"And if it doesnt work?" Jane asked Maura and Maura thanked God that there was no one behind her as she suddenly braked so she could truly look at her wife. Tears were building in her eyes and she didn't want them to fall.

"Is that what you want?" Maura asked, not believing that she was asking this question on the first day of their holiday.

"Maur" Jane sounded but didn't meet her eyes as she then turned her head to look out at the scenery instead.

"Is it?" Maura asked as she felt the tears begin to fall.

"I..." Jane started and it was Maura's turn to look away from her wife as she then pulled the car to the side of the road. She couldn't drive like this.

"No" she finally broke. "I can't lose you.

Maura slumped forward and Jane's hand wrapped around her own, both not sure what more they could say to each other.


	18. AN

**Sorry guys, thought i had updated this. Am on holidays atm, but left my writing book at home which prevents me from updating. On a plus side, i have been writing some more, so will able to consecutively update when i get back.**


	19. Chapter 19

**Will update as regularly as possible.**

 **Still don't own the show :)**

After arriving in Cape Cod, Jane and Maura had decided to spend their first day at the house. Both were too consumed by the words spoken in the car. Jane, for most part had spent the day curled up on the couch under a blanket. She had joined Maura for a brief walk on the beach, but being on the cusp of winter, didn't actually call for more to do with this choice of holiday location. Jane had to figure that the season had factored into Maura's decision.

Maura had also kept to herself. Jane had seen her disappear into her little office once or twice but had ultimately spent the majority of her time on the front deck staring out at the water.

Jane wasn't one hundred percent sure how this was conducive to them repairing their marriage but had to admit that she hadn't wanted to go to work that morning.

All her friends and colleagues had witnessed the explosion of Maura yesterday. They had seen her fall apart. Even Sean, who had been her step father since she was 15, had witnessed her down fall. It had probably been a contributing factor to why he had been so quick to approve her holiday. She had embarrassed him.

The thought of such things made her feel guilty. The man was a fantastic lieutenant and a stand-out father figure. She may not call him dad, but he had done more for her than her Pop ever did. Francesco Senior was a raging alcoholic, a terrible businessman and a lousy husband. He had left their family in a massive debt while he fled, chasing a barely legal skirt, when Jane was 13.

Jane knew that there was a time that she had idolised her father, but the way he had left her Ma and the hurt it caused her family, tore it all away.

There was a part of Jane that was glad she had not progressed to the point of having children with Maura, not that either of them didn't want to. They had been looking into adoption and IVF when Jane had found herself pinned to a basement floor with a pair of scalpels through her hands. They hadn't touched the topic since.

Thinking of kids, Jane figured that if kids were involved now and she wasn't able to salvage her marriage or what they were as a couple, then the kids would experience what it was like to have a broken home, just like she had.

At the thought of things not working out, Jane's heart clenched. It was a true indication that it wasn't something she wanted. She wanted Maura, hell, she still wanted the house in the suburbs and a couple of kids, like they had fist planned. She just wasn't sure how she could tell Maura, furthermore, how did they get past all this and begin to mend?

Jane turned her head to look towards the doors her wife had been hiding behind. She wondered what it was that she was doing.

Slowly Jane stood, pulling her quilt with her. For a second she hesitated. Should she go to her wife or leave her be? Were they going to have dinner together or separately? Jane thought she could order some take out, it would save them from having to go to a restaurant as neither of them had gathered food to stock the fridge or cupboards.

Before Jane's head could decide, her heart decided for her and soon enough she found herself standing in front of the door that divided her from her wife.

As her hand took a hold of the handle, her head was screaming at her to retreat back to the couch and forget about everything. Fighting back the thought, Jane turned the handle and pulled the door open.

Maura wasn't there.

Panic started to overtake as Jane's eyes flicked down to the water. There was no sign of Maura.

Retreating back into the house, Jane dropped the quilt as she made her way to the small office to check whether Maura has slipped by her and gone in there, but still no Maura. Jane tried to remain calm as she fought the things stirring in her head and heart.

Had Maura finally left her?

Has she told her she was going?

Was she coming back?

Jane staggered back out the front door and onto the beach. The sand was cool against her bare feet, she looked in both directions, hoping to see that her wife had simply gone for a jog.

She wasn't their either.

Jane didn't know what to think. Has Maura been unhappy with their exchange in the car and the continued silence that she had decided to leave? Would it be that easy for her wife to walk away from her?

Jane felt her legs give out and she collapsed on the deserted beach. No tears came, but an uncertainty and dread took over. So much so that she didn't hear the closing of a door or the calling of her name.


	20. Chapter 20

**Sorry for the delay**

 **real world has been kicking my arse**

 **Still don't own the show**

Maura dropped everything in her hands when she saw Jane collapse to the ground. She wasn't too sure of what to think as she rushed towards her wife. Maura couldn't see any tears on her wife's cheeks to indicate that she had been hurt.

On reaching Jane, Maura was unsure whether to touch her or not. Did she try to help her up? Comfort her? Maura had no idea what to do with her wife.

After a moment to consider her options, Maura decided to sit beside her and wrap her arms around her.

Today had not been the start that Maura had hoped for. This trip was supposed to be about stripping away the hurt they had inflicted on each other and rebuilding. So far, they had barely talked. Maura had considered herself lucky that Jane had even joined her on the beach walk.

Maura had hoped that her leaving to go get them some dinner, would give Jane the space to get mentally prepared to start the conversations aimed to mend themselves and their marriage, tonight. She had not thought she would be coming home to this.

Maura noted that it took Jane sometime to register her presence, not to mention the fact that her arms were wrapped around her. Once she had, Maura felt her wife turn into her, clinging onto her shirt. The tears finally came and they streamed down Jane's cheeks and onto Maura's chest, staining her peach coloured blouse. Maura simply sat and held Jane close, unsure of what else she had to offer her.

Maura had waited for Jane to finish crying before she shifted again, prompting Jane to lift her head off of her shoulder. It was only then that Maura could study Jane's face and read the fear that was there.

"J…" Maura began, only to be interrupted by Jane who seemed to withdraw from her hold.

"W…Where were you?" Jane stammered and Maura froze. Had her absence really been the trigger?

Maura carefully studied her wife's face as Jane asked the question again. Her hand reaching out to rest on her cheek. Her thumb swiping away the remnants of Jane's tears.

"I went to get dinner." Maura answered, "I thought you needed space, so I went to get us something to eat."

"I" Jane went to respond but stopped as she studied her wife. Maura almost felt intimidated by the way Jane's eyes studied her before they looked around them as if to look for clues that would verify her statement.

"Oh Jane" Maura sounded. She had never seen her look this lost without her. Sure she had been fragile after Hoyt and at times she still was, but nothing quite like this. She had to admit though that it had become a habit to tell her wife when she was leaving the house, especially after the attack. It seemed that it was what she needed to console her when she was feeling anxious, however, it had been a while since it had been this bad.

"I thought you were gone." Jane finally responded and looked away embarrassed.

Maura sighed as she pulled her wife towards her, was Jane really that insecure about their relationship? How had they reached this point?

"You just left" Jane said as she shifted in Maura's embrace and despite looking like she was going to pull away again, gripped onto Maura a little tighter.

Maura let out a sigh. She wasn't sure how to handle all this. It made her think that heading to a counsellor may have been a better idea. Either way, she knew that she needed to get Jane up and back inside out of the changing weather and curious eyes.

"I'm sorry" Maura told Jane as she gave her a squeeze. She then gestured towards the house. "Let's get you inside"

Jane turned to look at the house before back to Maura as if to question whether she would be coming as well.

"I'm going to grab the dinner that I set down over there." Maura said as she indicated to where she had dropped the plastic bags that held their Chinese containers. "Then after you have had some dinner, we will talk about what happened here."

Maura could see that Jane was reluctant to go inside without her, yet nodded to indicate that she accepted the instructions. Maura let go of Jane and watched as she stood. She herself followed suit before moving towards the plastic bags.

Jane had take a few steps towards the house, but stopped there, seemingly waiting for her.

Maura simply sighed. She gathered the bags where Jane stood, waiting for her. "Oh" Maura sounded as she moved back towards her wife and then followed her into the house.

Only moments after, Maura set down the bags of Chinese take out and before she could reach inside to take the first container out, two thin strong arms embraced her.

Heavy heart…. Heavy heart…. Heavy heart…. Heavy heart…. Heavy heart….

Calliope Torres was tired. Her feet ached after a long surgery and her stomach felt uneasy. She knew that her first trimester was practically over, but it didn't mean the Little Grey bundle she was carrying was going to back off and give her peace. However, she had to admit, that the reprieve she had been given over the past few days had helped her feel more human. That being said, if there was anywhere Calliope wanted to be right now, it was home in bed with her fiancée.

Instead, she was busy walking beside Meredith as Katherine escorted them around the third possible venue for their wedding. The woman had been able to tee up 5 of them which was exceptional at the last minute. Three of the venues were owned by Thatcher Grey and while that could be considered easier, it would mean that their wedding wouldn't take place on neutral territory. Something she would prefer, especially if she wanted her father to attend and behave.

This venue was a large ope courtyard that connected to an elite country club. Internally, the country club was a place that would be easily manipulated to suit their needs, but externally Calliope was not feeling any connection to the place. Flowers had over run the walls despite the fact that the surface was more paving then greenery. It left a lot to be desired.

The first two properties had also been Grey's. This one wasn't. Calliope was unsure f what she could do if the last non 'Grey' destination didn't suit. She knew that Meredith wasn't overly fussed on where they got married but she hadn't been able to tell her fiancée that she wanted them to use wed somewhere away from her father's domain.

Suddenly they came to a stop and she looked down at her hand which was still in Meredith's before looking at at her fiancée.

"Have you seen anything you like?" Meredith asked, and as she did she moved to be completely in front of her. It took a moment to realise that she was being shielded from Katherine what was standing back at the entrance of the country club.

Calliope bit her lip before meeting Meredith's eyes once more. Slowly she shook her head "no"

Meredith let out a small sigh before running her hands up Calliopes sides. "Do you want to leave the last two for tomorrow?" she asked.

Calliope could see the concern on Meredith's face and she had to wonder whether her fiancée had picked up on her uneasiness. "Not really" she responded, knowing that she just wanted to get this part of the process over with.

There was a moments pause, long enough for Calliope to look around the garden once more. "Can't we just do something small, more personal?"

Meredith gave a shy smile and a nod. "We can do this however you want." She offered before moving closer to capture her lips.

"The next place will be perfect for you." Katherine said from behind, startling the couple, pulling them away from each other.

"It's small, intimate and has only become available recently. Someone called off their wedding." Katherine informed as she began to lead the women out of the country club.

Meredith slipped her hand into Calliope's and gave it a squeeze. "Sounds good" Calliope responded and tried to not focus on the churning of her stomach as she made her way to the car.


	21. Chapter 21

**Sorry for the delay**

 **Still don't own the show**

Jane sat staring at her food. She had picked at her meal, but after what had happened earlier, it would be easy to determine that she really wasn't hungry.

She was embarrassed by her episode. She should have known that Maura wouldn't bring her all the way out here just to leave her. If she wanted to be honest though, Jane knew that her relationship with Maura had shifted. Nut just from this, but from the moment she had pulled her trigger and shot Paddy Doyle.

Could they come back from this? Jane wondered. It wouldn't be the same as before, but it had to be time for them to turn over a new leaf. There was too much water under the bridge to allow them to start from scratch, but they needed to do something.

"We can't keep living like this." Jane finally said, stunning even herself. "I need to not be worried that you're going to leave me at every turn, every time i fuck up."

"Jane" Maura scolded, never liking Janes use of profanities.

"It's true." Jane spoke, "our marriage shifted the moment i pulled the trigger on your father." Jane said as she gained momentum. She knew that if she stopped now then she wouldn't be able to get the courage to continue. "You've had one foot out the door ever since."

Jane felt tears in her eyes as she looked across the dinner table to her wife. "Everything became my fault. I never once lied to you about who i am. You've always known where my loyalties lie."

With her last comment, Janes eyes shifted as she fought to blink back the tears that wanted to come. "You told me earlier that we needed this holiday. Suggested that it will fix things. You asked me if its what I want." Jane said as she moved to stand. She felt that she could no longer stay seated there. "But i didn't ask you.' Jane turned back to her wife a moment, meeting her stunned teary eyes. "Am I still what you want?"

 **Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...**

Relief, it filled Meredith and over took everything else. There she sat alongside her wife as they made the long drive back to Queen Anne and their newly purchased home. They hadn't needed to see venue number 5. They had stopped at 4.

The Tibbetts Creek Manor was perfect. From the creekside acreage being serene and private and the ability to choose between a garden based reception or the house itself, had captured both their attention as it covered them if it were to rain (which was highly possible with being in Seattle).

Meredith knew Callie liked the place, not just because it met what they wanted, but because it wasn't attached to the Grey empire. It didn't worry her though as she understood how it might look to the Torres family and she didn't want any friction.

"I can't wait to get home." Callie offered as the jeep that Meredith was driving came to a stop at a set of traffic lights. They were a few short turns from home.

"Tired?" Meredith asked, quickly flicking her eyes over to her fiancee and then back to the road.

"Sore, nauseous, hungry" Callie listed and Meredith shifted her hand from the steering wheel a moment to rub her fiancees knee.

"You've had a long day." Meredith acknowledged before moving her attention back to the road. The light had just turned green and she allowed the car to roll forward slightly before quickly breaking. A truck flew by narrowly missing the front of their car.

"Shit!" Callie exclaimed and Meredith turned her head as a crunching sound filled the night. Both Callie and Meredith turned to see the truck that narrowly missed them, jumped the centre island on the other side of the road and ploughed into stopped traffic. Before anyone could say anything Callie had the phone out dialling 911 and Meredith changed the cars direction and pulled into the curb before jumping out the car to grab their first aide kit.

"Be careful" Callie called as she too stepped from the car.

Meredith turned to look at her tired fiancee and nodded as she heard her then continue to advice the operator of the station.

"My wife and I are doctors. She's going to go check possible causalities now. Ambulance and police required."

Meredith smiled at Callie's slip on calling her her wife before rushing to the first car she could see. Pulling out the priority tags that they kept in their kit as she went.

 **Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart... Heavy Heart...**

Maura sat staring at Jane. She had no words. Everything she had just verbally thrown at her was right. Things hadn't been the same since Jane had shot Paddy.

The original back lash was vicious and she had treated Jane far worse than Jane had treated her. Maura would have completely kicked the woman out if it hadn't been for the media frenzy it would have caused.

Yes, they had begun to mend bridges and come back together, the first step being made in the face of trauma. But now she could see that she hadn't emotionally returned and the physicality of their relationship was a mere shadow of what it had been.

Maura watched as Jane paced, her eyes on her expecting an answer.

"When you shot Paddy..." Maura started but then stopped, trying hard to find the right words to iterate what was going on in her head. "When Agent Dean showed up, I figured you must have told him Paddy was in town and connected him to me." Maura said as she tried to steady her nerves.

"I couldn't understand why you would do that. You had been okay with letting him protect me previously, and then you gave him up."

"I.." Jane moved to interrupt and Maura shot her a look, reminding Jane that it was not her turn to talk. "It felt like a betrayal, like you put your badge before me. Then you shot him."

The tension in the air was heavy and Maura hoped that she would be able to continue on.

Jane and stopped pacing now and Maura knew that she was itching to interrupt. "I didn't and still don't know what you told Agent Dean about Paddy, or why. But Paddy did confirm that if you hadn't shot him, then he would have shot you.' Maura looked away from Jane. "I actually forgave you, in that moment, for shooting my father."

"Arthur Isles is your father." Jane quickly replied.

"Jane" Maura warned, knowing that she needed to get to the point. "I think i forgot your vows, your promise to me. Barry reminded me the other day. Up until then, you were right. I was still half way out the door, not necessarily wanting to leave, but unsure if i could get passed your betrayal with Agent Dean."

"Nothing happened with him!" Jane protested. "I didn't even talk to him about Paddy."

"You expect me to believe that he miraculously knew that Paddy Doyle was in town and covering my arse?" Maura asked, the jealousy she had felt coming back now in one massive wave.

"He had met me for lunch, nothing more, nothing less. He told me he was here for a case. He didn't ask for insight." Jane argued.

"And yet you met with him and shared a meal. If you weren't talking about Paddy or this case he was here for..." Maura said using her hands to show inverted commas, "Then why meet with him? You would have noting to talk about."

Jane looked at Maura in shock. Maura couldn't help but shoot her a pointed stare. It felt like everything had finally hit its pinnacle. She was too blind by old anger and jealousy to know whether it was a good thing. "It was professional courtesy" Jane defended.

"What did you talk about?" Maura demanded.

"You!" Jane roared. "I talked about you, our family and the impact Hoyt had on our plans."

Maura watched as Jane then stormed to the fridge, pulling out a beef before stomping back. "Just because there was an attraction felt on one side of the table, doesn't mean it was reciprocated. Damn it Maura, do you really think i could be unfaithful to you?"

Both women stared at each other, neither spoke. Maura's anger and jealousy was blocking her from answering Janes question. While Jane was trying to figure out how her question had escalated from a 'What do you want?' to a 'do you think i would cheat?'

Finally Jane found it within herself to turn away. 'If you think that i would ever cheat on you then you don't know me at all." Jane said as she began to walk away, moving through the front door and out onto the sand.

Maura watched her go. Everything in her body was telling her to go after Jane and tell her no, that she was just jealous and scared. "I want you." Maura said despite knowing that Jane wouldn't hear her. She then moved to the sofa where she sat down and cried.


	22. Chapter 22

**Sorry for the long wait, am working on another update as i write this. Real world sucks and I still don't own the show...**

Jane wanted to leave. Was there really any point staying to work on her marriage, she wondered, when Maura had admitted to believing that she thought that she was capable of cheating. To Jane, that was like saying that she was just like her father, something she definitely didn't want to be.

Jane knew one thing, despite it all, she didn't want to give up and walk away from the one person who she loved completely despite how much it seemed to hurt.

Shifting her toes through the sand, Jane hoped that it would be enough to calm herself before she had to go back to the lion's den. There was no way to reapproach what had just passed between them. Not tonight. All Jane wanted to do was climb back under her quilt in the guest bedroom and go to sleep, however, she couldn't see that happening. She had a feeling that either she wouldn't be able to sleep or Maura wouldn't let her sleep. All Jane was sure of was that if this crap between them continued for the duration of this "Getaway", then they wouldn't be returning to Boston as a couple, nor would they be relaxed.

Jane let out a sigh as she moved to rest her head on her knees. She took the time to breathe in the cool ocean air. She closed her eyes and remained resting as she attempted to gather her thoughts.

Jane had no idea how long she had been sitting, trying to calm down when the front door sounded behind her. Moments passed before she felt Maura drape a light blanket over her shoulders.

Suddenly there was a body beside her and Maura brushed against her as she pulled the remainder of the blanket across her own back. Jane fought temptation to wrap an arm around her wife and sat completely still, waiting for something, she just wasn't sure what.

Beside her, Maura sighed. "Do you remember when we were first dating?" Maura asked and Jane nodded. She wasn't 100% sure why Maura was even thinking of starting there.

"You were working in Narcotics," Maura continued, "Martinez had a huge thing for you."

"Maur…" Jane started and was quickly shushed.

"Yu told me about him, and then I saw you guys together in the café." Maura said with a smile. "You were so animated with him and he flirted."

Jane turned to look at her wife, waiting for the punch line.

"I got so jealous of him and I let you know it," She breathed. "I was the first time I had ever been so jealous and you reassured me that I had nothing to worry about."

"Maura I," Jane started only to be shushed again.

"I knew back then that you wouldn't cheat, just like I know that you didn't even bat an eye lid at Agent Dean."

Jane let out a sigh of relief.

"My jealous monster was already hard to control." Maura said as she looked back out over the water. "Him shooting Paddy, well it only made it worse."

"I think you instinctively shot at Paddy after he had shot Dean, when in my head, it was trying to tell me that you shot Paddy because Agent Dean meant more, a lot more."

Jane remained quiet, not knowing what to say to Maura's confession.

"I guess what I'm saying is, I know that Agent Dean was nothing more than a colleague to you. It's just the green eyed monster didn't want to see it. I know you wouldn't cheat."

"I'm not my father." Jane countered and she heard Maura breathe a sigh of relief.

"I know," Maura responded as she rested her head on Janes shoulder.

Time seemed to pass and Jane slowly let herself relax beside her wife.

"I want this" Maura finally said as she reached for Janes hand and entwined their fingers. "I still want you."

Jane let out a breath she didn't realise she was holding. Finally, she responded by giving Maura's hand a squeeze in response. She had no words and figured she didn't need any.


	23. Chapter 23

**I still don't own the show.**

Their night had been a far cry from the quiet evening she had wanted, but at least they were alive. It was the one thing Callie was holding on to.

She was currently sitting in the gallery watching as Meredith finished up wiht one of the patients she had accompanied to the hospital.

The accident had been fatal. Callie had guessed as much from the moment it had played out in front of them. There had been multiple deaths and fuel had leaked over the road. The fuel had made Callie nervous especially with Meredith so close to it. She had been going to join her future wife, to assist her in assessing the trauma, but Meredith had made it clear that she was not to approach the vehicles.

Callie had not been someone to be bossed around, certainly by Meredith. However, she understood the dangers involved and kept away. Meredith had done everything she could to keep the truck driver and the mother-daughter combo in the second car alive. The husband in the second car and the couple in the first were already gone.

Meredith had offered her an out when all the patients were loaded into the back of the Ambulance vehicles. She had urged Callie to go home, but Callie didn't want to leave her fiancee. They had been close to dying today and she wanted to keep Meredith in sight.

Meredith had been quick to hand the truck driver with creeping paralysis over to Derek. She had already diagnosed a tutor. The mother was not in good shape and in a heart beat, her mother and Dr Theodora Altman had whisked her off for a full triage, leaving Meredith with the daughter. Callie had assisted Meredith in processing the little girl, had ensured that the little girl had no fractures that needed surgery. The MRI had shown a sever brain bleed and Meredith had promptly booked an OR.

Meredith had expressed concern about cranial swelling. It was unpredictable and all Callie could do was encourage Meredith and reiterate how great a surgeon she knew her fiancee was. Callie knew that Meredith would struggle if she wasn't able to keep her safe; there had been more than enough death for one night. It was something that was never easy as a surgeon, let alone a neurosurgeon.

The procedure had been long. The skull had a section removed to allow access to the bleed that had formed. There was no knowing the extent of the damage, not until the swelling was reduced and the patient woke up.

Callie watched as Meredith took the time to close up. She had decided to leave the skull flap off which left Callie wondering if her fiancee was being extra cautious or whether she was anticipating the need to operate again.

Moving to stand, Callie didn't take her tired eyes from Meredith. She looked almost as tired as Callie felt. Meredith needed to no longer be in that room. She was exhausted and Callie fought the temptation to go to the intercom and tell her to step back. However, it wasn't her place, nor would it be right to undermine her fiancee in her own OR.

Meredith needed her, not to hover, but to hold her when everything was finished. The woman may be too stubborn when it came to seeing out surgeries, especially when she get attached to the patient. This would be different though. Meredith had cared for and treated multiple people single handedly tonight. Three of those people had died. Hell! It could have been them! There was nothing that Callie would be able to do to remove the impact of being at that accident, seeing and doing so much. Nothing would block out the cries of the little girl who had lost her father and whose mother was in a critical condition.

Callie moved out of the gallery, her hand shifting onto the minuscule baby bump. She wanted to get down to the scrub room to meet Meredith once she was done. She did not wish to dwell on what could have been lost earlier in the evening and instead focused her thoughts on what they still had. She still had her fiancee and their baby and soon, if Callie had her way, she would have those things curled up asleep in an on call room. There would be no driving home to bed tonight. No takeaway. There would only be a bowl of soup fro the canteen downstairs and a bunk bed with her fiancee.

On reaching the scrub room, Callie leant against the sink and watched Meredith carefully. She could see that she had covered what she could and dismissed the staff that were no longer needed. Those people made their way into the scrub room and prepped to leave. Callie moved out of their way, eyes shifting as she watched as Meredith gave clear instructions to the fellow who would be escorting the little girl to recovery.

Callie chose to ignore her grumbling stomach as she waited for Meredith to remove her gown and watched as she too began to make her way towards the scrub room. Before Callie could speak, Meredith beat her to it.

"I'm going to go check on the mother and report to next of kin."

Callie took a deep breath. She knew that she needed to pick her battles and this could potentially lead to one.

"Last I heard, the mother was undergoing a lengthy procedure, next of kin is on the other side of the country and before you ask, Derek removed the tutor on the drivers spine and is closing up."

Meredith moved past Callie towards the sink. She didn't look at her and Callie was waiting for her to react. On receiving nothing, Callie moved forward and rested her hands on Merediths hips.

"When there is an update, we'll hear about it. Until then, lets find food and a bed. You need your rest."

Meredith's head dropped forward and Callie felt her fiancee draw in a deep breath. She was expecting her to fight, but when she felt Meredith lean back into her arms and lift her head, she slipped her arms around her completely.

"Okay" Meredith sounded in resignation.

Callie held her a moment longer before leading her out of the scrub room and towards the end of her evening.


	24. Chapter 24

**I still don't own the show.**

It had been a rough week. It was something Maura was willing to admit, but she was pretty sure that they had weathered the storm. In fact, she was sure that the storm was clearing and that her marriage was coming out into the sunshine on the happier side of things.

Over the course of the week, Maura had made a conscious effort to tell Jane something each day that she loved about her. Over the first two days, Jane had been hesitant to acknowledge her wife's words, even more so to respond. However, by the end of the week Jane began to respond, not in kind, but with a small thanks.

Maura had watched as her wife slowly withdrew from the blanket she had sought comfort in, and began to come out into the world. It had started with short walks on the beach together and advanced to meals at the local diner. It was small, but it had promise of things being repaired.

There had been no mention of the turmoil that had dragged them there, not at first. By the third day, Maura had completely apologised to Jane for not recognising her wife's attempts to protect her and keep her safe, while Jane responded by apologising for invading her privacy. There was no question over what would happen next with the information Jane had gathered.

It had taken 4 nights before Jane begun to share the main bedroom, and on the fifth night she actually let her wife hold her. Maura had been relieved to feel her wife back in reach. Each mini milestone, small conversation or stroll along the beach, was piecing them back together.

Maura knew that Jane still had questions; that she was still slightly guarded over everything that had happened building up to the break from work. Maura was more than willing to talk about those things. She was, but she was also willing to wait until it appeared that her wife would be ready to discuss them.

She needed to make a choice in regards to the information Jane had given her. Maura had read over it a number of times. She knew that her mother had married a Thatcher Grey also of Irish heritage. That the man was now the owner of a franchise of Hotels. He seemed to be very business minded, a polar opposite to what she had thought she knew of the great Ellis Grey.

Ellis Grey was someone Maura still needed to process. The husband was not a bother, the reports she had read told her that he was a family man. Although she wasn't sure he would welcome her with open arms, she figured she might stand a chance if she did try to make contact.

Ellis on the other hand was well known in the medical world as a prominent surgeon. She was a trail blazer of her times, pioneering surgeries and burying herself in her work. Maura had to admire her work ethic, but the woman's reputation of being abrupt and quite firm with her colleagues and others around her, intimidated Maura. She wasn't exactly sure how this woman would react to her popping up and saying 'hey, I'm the baby you thought died.' It definitely wouldn't go down well.

Maura tried not to think about the daughter, Meredith Grey. She didn't have much on her, Jane had simply noted that the woman had recently returned to Seattle from Miami and that she worked at the same hospital as her mother. Maura wondered whether the woman was anything like her mother. Articles that appeared through google, told her that she had a strong reputation in her field and that she was currently working under Derek Shepherd, the countries leading neurosurgeon.

Maura figured raising the topic of her biological mother would be pulling off the bandaid to wounds that hadn't necessarily healed. That wasn't exactly something that she was ready to do. She also wasn't sure what to do with the information anyway. Did she want to meet her mother? Was there anything she could achieve from dredging up the woman's past?

Maura let out a sigh as she looked out across the ocean. She had been sat in the sand, watching the waves crash against the shore. The sun was shinning for the first time in the last two days, the clouds pulling back enough to allow it to slightly warm the Earth. Jane had gone for a run, something she had started to do to give herself some space, an old habit she had given up on when Hoyts attack had driven her to feeling insecure and vulnerable.

Maura's fingers circled the top of her empty coffee cup. Her mind caught on Jane and Hoyt. She never hated anyone more than she hated that man. That was one person who she didn't miss and definitely was glad that Jane had killed. He had taken the innocence and honeymoon period of their love away. The plans for a baby had been haltered based on the terror he had caused with her wife. Had they thought of having a child since then, Maura had, but Jane hadn't mentioned it again.

Feeling an ache within her, Maura tried to push the thought of the baby she had always wanted aside. She definitely wasn't going to be mentioning any possible baby right now. She wasn't going to use it as a pawn to help rebuild her marriage. If they grew stronger again, then sure, Maura hoped that they would be able to consider it. There would be nothing better than having a mini Jane running around their home.

On thinking about Jane, Maura saw her wife running back towards her along the beach. There was something about the way she moved that captivated Maura. Her eyes didn't leave her wife until the she dropped down on the sand beside her, turning her body to also look out at the ocean.

"Good run?" Maura asked her wife as she felt her wife lean across and press a kiss to her cheek. The small gesture filling her with hope.

"Great, even better with that sun." Jane had said honestly.

They sat in silence, comfortable to just watch the waves, Janes hand slowly moving to cover Maura's. The gesture allowing for constant contact.

Finally Maura turned from the ocean, coffee cup now sitting beside her. Her eyes moved over the lines of her wife's face before dropping to her lips. Not wanting to over step, but wanting to greet her wife properly, Maura moved to turn Janes head to face her and she leaned in and captured her wife's lips in a easy kiss. It wasn't one of passion, but something that she was sure now, that she would be doing ever day for the rest of her life.

"I'm glad" she told her wife once she pulled back. Smiling at her whole heartedly, before turning back to the waves.

It was only a few moments later, that she felt Jane shift closer. Her arm moving to wrap around her shoulders. Maura relaxed instantly. Yeah, she thought, we are coming out of the storm. Something that made her feel even better. Especially now in regards to the decision to get away from Boston.

Boston, she wasn't sure what things were going to be like once they returned home, but home was still a week away.


End file.
